The Conduit War: The Conduit's Deception
by Ciaus Falkreath
Summary: Delsin has just exposed Augustine and liberated Seattle from the D.U.P. Now, a rebellious D.U.P. agent and his partner must work with Delsin, Fetch, and Eugene to free the conduits at Curdun Cay Station and retrieve a secret weapon before the rest of the D.U.P. have a chance to retaliate. Trailer on YouTube! Type "The Conduit's Deception Teaser Trailer" uploaded by meeeee!
1. PROLOGUE

He sat there patiently at his table, alone. He looked all around him at the dozens of other people in the immediate vicinity, unable to shake the feeling he had that someone was watching him. Moments later, a woman dressed in an apron approached him.

"Good afternoon sir. I'll be your waitress today," she said while setting down two menus.

"Thank you," the man replied while taking the two menus.

"Are we waiting for somebody?" the waitress asked. The man's thoughts seemed to be somewhere else.

"Huh? Oh yeah I'm… I'm waiting" the man replied seconds later.

"Would you like me to come back later?" the waitress asked.

"Yes please," the man replied politely.

"Alright then. I'll check on you in a little bit," she told him before walking away towards another table. He sighed deeply, as if he barely got away with doing something sinister.

"Come on Bentley, where are you?" he whispered to himself. He watched the doors to the restaurant as they opened and closed, as people came and went. However, a few minutes later, a man came in and caught his eye. He looked like he was in his late twenty's and had short blonde hair. His glasses rested uneasily on his face. His coat seemed stiff and his pants still had folds going vertically along the legs. He saw him talking to the associate at the front of the door. A second later, she pointed towards the man sitting at the table. The blonde man sighed and walked towards him and sat at the same table just across from him.

"Thanks for meeting me Bentley," he told the blonde man.

"No problem Sam, but why here of all places?" Bentley asked the sitting man.

"Because Olaf's Sea Shack has the best fish and chips around here," he explained while tapping the menu in front of Bentley.

"And…" Bentley said while gesturing him to continue.

"You know the kid that Augustine met a while back?" Sam asked.

"Delsin?" Bentley asked. Sam nodded his head and leaned in closer. Sam responded by doing the same thing. Sam looked around at the other people in the restaurant several times before looking back at Bentley.

"He did it," Sam whispered.

"You mean Augustine's—"

"Not dead, but down," Sam explained.

"How come the rest of the D.U.P. doesn't know?" Bentley asked.

"When she was defeated, the D.U.P. in Seattle were placed under arrest. Well… after Delsin dealt with them," Sam answered.

"Then where's Augustine?"

"Drove her personally to a special facility. I even had to knock out the other agent I was with," Sam explained.

"So the D.U.P. is operating solely on its soldiers?" Bentley asked.

"Exactly, they're vulnera—"

"Shush!" Bentley interrupted.

"Are you ready to order now?" the waitress asked again.

"Um yes. Can you start us off with two iced teas?" Bentley ordered.

"I can certainly do that," she said writing in her notebook, "Any appetizers?" Bentley looked at Sam.

"No thank you," Sam answered while looking at Bentley.

"Alright. I'll be right back with your drinks," she said before walking away.

"We have to get to Curdun Cay and get the R.S.," Sam whispered.

"How do you expect us to do that?" Bentley whispered furiously, "It's two against five hundred." Sam pulled his smart phone out of his side pocket and tapped on the screen a few times.

"You mean five against five hundred," Sam said as he handed his phone to Bentley. He looked at the screen on Sam's phone. He was watching a muted video. He saw a young man in a beanie launching smoke projectiles at D.U.P. soldiers, a bright purple light zooming around a large building, and a towering figure flying just above shooting a beam of light.

"What is this?" Bentley asked awe-struck.

"The raid on the D.U.P. tower," Sam answered, slightly raising his voice, "These kids know about Curdun Cay and want free the conduits inside. If we work with them, we can plan an assault. They can free their conduits, and we can retrieve our R.S. afterwards. Bentley gave Sam his phone back and Sam exited the video, put it to sleep, and placed it back into his pocket. Bentley seemed concerned

"You can't tell them about this thing. I know they have good hearts, but they're young, impressionable. If they know what this thing can do they'll—"

"I wasn't going to tell them," Sam said lowering his voice again, "They'll only think we're trying to help the conduits."

"We can't let anybody have this thing," Bentley sighed.

"This is the only way," Sam whispered. Seconds later, the waitress came back to their table.

"There we are," she said while placing two tall glasses of iced tea with lemon slices on the table, "Are we ready to order?" The two men looked at each other.

"Yeah, I think we are," Bentley told her.


	2. CHAPTER 1 - Waiting for a Spark

He was slowing down, all of the cars were speeding past him. He drifted from corner to corner, trying to make up the ground he had lost. He hit the side of one car and sent it crashing into a nearby wall. He punched the gas to increase his speed: third place. The finish line was fast approaching. He drove to the left and hit a ramp. For several seconds he was in the air. As he approached the ground, he landed on top of a car and wrecked it: second place.

He increased his speed and quickly caught up with the car ahead of him. They both pushed against each other trying to throw their opponent off track. He tried to push the other car, but it was a lot bigger than his was. The finish line was just ahead. The other car drove away from him a few feet and drove back towards him. Suddenly, he slammed the brakes and let the other car drive past him and off the track. He zoomed past his opponent and across the finish line. Then, in bright yellow letters, "1st Place" appeared on the screen.

"Yeah, that's what I'm talking about!" he shouted while holding his smart phone in the air. He looked back at the screen to see names of other racers fill the scoreboards after him. Just as he was about to begin another race, a sound like knocking came from the front of the longhouse.

"Hello?" an older female voice erupted as the sound of a creaking door echoed throughout the longhouse. Suddenly he heard her gasp and immediately put down his phone.

"Good afternoon. Is Delsin Rowe home?" a man asked. His heart skipped a beat.

"Why do you want him?" the woman said angrily. He peeked out from behind a wall and saw an older woman in a wheelchair and a man in black and yellow riot armor: D.U.P. armor.

"It's okay Betty. I got this guy," he said holding out his left hand in a defensive stance, "Why do you want me?" Betty rolled her wheelchair slightly out of the way.

"Delsin, I'm agent Sam Campbell of the Department of Unified Protection," he said calmly.

"And I care because? Wait…why do you sound familiar?" Delsin asked, still holding out his hand in defense.

"I've been leaving dead drops for you to pick up about D.U.P. operations around Seattle," the agent answered.

"So… you're the informant?" Delsin asked, lowering his hand.

"Yes, I have allies who despised Augustine. Together, we gathered intel about her plans and tests and gave them to you," he explained, "And congratulations on overthrowing Augustine."

"And congrats on not getting caught," Delsin replied, lowering his hand, "You sure are a sly one, aren't you?"

"Well, I did have to—"

"Ooh ooh! Can I call you that?" Delsin interrupted.

"Call me what?" Sam asked.

"Sly," Delsin answered.

"I suppose so," Sam told him. He removed his helmet and visor and leaned in closer towards Delsin. He saw Sam's scruffy brown hair, slightly tan skin, and pale blue eyes.

"Listen to me. Innocent people need your help right now, not conduits, not bio-terrorists, people. Augustine may be gone, but those conduits are still locked up at Curdun Cay. They need your help," Sam whispered.

"How do I know I can trust you?" Delsin asked him.

"I told you about Fetch and her brother. I told you about Eugene and his troubles at school. I told you about the powers we were experimenting with. I told you everything I know about the D.U.P… everything. Doesn't that count for something?" Sam argued. Delsin looked conflicted. Sam knew he looked conflicted.

"You should go," Betty said, surprising the two of them.

"Are you sure Betty?" Delsin asked. She nodded.

"If this man is who he says he is, I see no reason you shouldn't trust him. You're a good man Delsin Rowe. I know that, you know that, your brother knows that," Betty told him. Delsin looked down at the floor and looked as though he was poked with several sharp needles.

"If you want, I can give you some time to—"

"No," Delsin interrupted just as Sam was about to leave, "I want to come. I want to help you." Sam placed his left hand on Delsin's shoulder.

"You won't be helping me, you'll be helping hundreds of people," Sam told him, before removing his hand from Delsin's shoulder, "But we can't do it alone."

"Fetch and Eugene," Delsin said, barely above a whisper.

"I have a plan to infiltrate Curdun Cay Station, but it requires their help as well as yours," Sam explained.

"That means I'm going back to Seattle," Delsin told him.

"No, it means we're going to Seattle," Sam replied.

"How are you going to drive there?" Delsin asked, "The bridge is still broken."

"Who said anything about driving?" Sam asked. A confused look spread across Delsin's face. "I suggest you get ready, chopper leaves in five." Delsin ran inside to get his shoes and vest on.

"Delsin?" Betty called just as he finished tying his shoes. He looked up to see a concerned look on her face.

"Don't worry Betty, I'll be fine," he assured her.

"I know. It's just… listen, what you're doing is right, but are doing this for the right reason?" Betty asked.

"I don't understand," Delsin said, confused.

"Whenever you do anything in life, it's important to ask yourself: 'Why am I doing this?' You need to know why you're doing what you're doing," Betty explained, "Do you understand now?"

"I think so," he answered while taking time to think.

"Delsin! You ready?" Sam shouted from the doorway.

"Yeah, just give me a sec!" he shouted back.

"I have faith in you Delsin Rowe," Betty told him.

"I know. I promise, I'll make you proud," Delsin said while walking towards Sam."

"I know you will," Betty said quietly. Delsin and Sam walked a quarter of a mile away from the longhouse into a clearing where a D.U.P. helicopter stood silently.

"Are you sure you're ready?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, let's do this!" Delsin said enthusiastically. Sam looked inside the cockpit and gave a thumbs-up to the pilot. Seconds later, the propeller roared to life as the blades spun faster and faster until they transformed into a blurred circle. Sam opened the side door and gestured for Delsin to go inside. As he climbed up and buckled in, Sam took after him and closed the door behind. Sam used his index finger to draw a circle in the air. Immediately after, the helicopter slowly rose from the ground and into the sky.

"Remember, this next part is all you. As soon as we land, I want you to find Fetch and Eugene and make sure their on-board."

"That's if they don't shoot us down first," Delsin joked.

"I know you can do it," Sam replied.

There was a moment of silence before Delsin spoke again.

"Can I ask you something Sly?"

"Sure," Sam replied.

"Why did _you_ betray Augustine?" Delsin asked.

"A better question would be 'Why wouldn't the _others_ betray her?'" Sam responded. Delsin nodded his head. "Because most of us haven't seen Curdun Cay. When I saw how conduits were being treated there, I couldn't stand by her side anymore."

"You did the right thing old man," Delsin said smirking. A small smile erupted from the corner of Sam's mouth.

"We're just a few minutes away sir!" the pilot shouted from the cockpit.

"Excellent! The sooner we get them, the better," Sam replied. The last few minutes in the air held dead silence inside the helicopter as it lowered itself onto a conduit-made concrete tower. Delsin slid open the door and was just about to leave the helicopter.

"Delsin!" Sam called, grabbing his attention, "Good luck!"

"Don't worry Sly! They'll be more than willing to help us."


	3. CHAPTER 2 - Unfinished Business

"You want us to do what?"

"Trust me Fetch, this guy's okay," Delsin assured her.

"How do you know?"

"Because he helped me. I trust him, and you should too Eugene," Delsin explained.

"Are you crazy D? He's a dupe trooper!" Fetch exclaimed.

"I know, but he isn't like the others," Delsin explained.

"What if he's lying to you Delsin?" Eugene asked.

"Ungh! Why won't you listen to me?" Delsin shouted.

"You weren't in Curdun Cay D! You don't know what they did to us in there!" Fetch snapped. Delsin stepped away from them and began pacing. He looked around at his setting. It was an old abandoned community center building with several neon signs scattered on both the stage and in the back behind shipping boxes. He stared at his two friends, sitting on small crates on the stage. He looked up to see a broken skylight that selfishly let in the sunlight.

"Guys please, I'm not asking you to trust him, I'm asking you to trust me in trusting him," Delsin explained.

"Sorry D, that isn't gonna' happen," Fetch told him.

"The Fetch I know wasn't the kind to walk away from a challenge," spoke a man behind Delsin. The three of them looked for the voice's owner. In an unlit part of the chamber, a man walked out wearing black and yellow armor and no helmet, Sam. Delsin, surprised to see him here, found the need to introduce Sam to the others.

"Fetch, Eugene, this is—"

"Sam?" Fetch muttered, "Is that you?"

"How are you Fetch?" Sam asked as she continued to walk towards him, as if in a trance. A few seconds later, Fetch was only feet away from his face. Instantly, she rushed in and hugged him. Sam hugged her back. He looked back up to see Eugene who looked just as stupefied.

"Come on, get over here," Sam said with a smile. Eugene rushed over and hugged him as well.

"I thought you got caught," Fetch whispered.

"You kidding? I'm too sly for that," Sam said, winking at Delsin. Suddenly, he was broken out of his trance as well.

"Wait, I'm so lost right now," Delsin commented. Fetch and Eugene broke away from Sam and gave him room to talk.

"I was assigned to take these two to Curdun Cay. I did everything I could to prolong their tests and I tried to get them out," Sam explained.

"Actually, I was just wondering why you were creeping in the shadows like a stalker," Delsin told him while scratching the back of his neck. Sam sighed and held his head down.

"Is he always like this?" Sam asked Fetch.

"No, sometimes he's a jerk," Fetch replied.

Delsin rolled his eyes.

"So… you guys in?" Delsin asked. Fetch and Eugene looked at each other for a moment before one of them spoke.

"If it's with Sam, I'm in," Fetch told Delsin.

"Count me in too," Eugene said.

"Thank you. If we want to rescue them, we better do it as quickly as possible," Sam explained.

"Alright Sly, we'll leave when you're ready," Delsin said enthusiastically.

"Actually, there's something I need to pick up before we leave if you guys have anything you need to do," Sam replied.

"What, like go to the bathroom?" Delsin said mockingly. Sam placed his head in his hands and sighed in response.

"Just meet me in the market over at the lantern district," Sam ordered.

"We'll be there, don't worry," Fetch assured him. Sam smiled as he walked out of the door.

"Sly?" Fetch questioned.

"What? It's his nickname," Delsin explained.

"Guess it's better than bannerman," she replieded just before bolting out of the room.

"That was just plain mean," he told himself, responding to Fetch's comment. Delsin, then, looked over at Eugene who was standing off on his own. "You were awfully quiet." Eugene seemed surprised at hearing Delsin's comment.

"I was just thinking," Eugene responded.

"About what?" Delsin asked.

"As soon as I was locked up, I wanted to leave. I wanted to go home, and for a while I kept telling myself, 'someone's gonna' save me, I'm gonna' get out of here'. But after the third year, I began losing hope," Eugene explained, "What if we tell them that we're gonna' help them, then we can't? What will we do then?" Delsin put his hand on Eugene's shoulder.

"You know, you can't worry about what might happen. All you have to worry about is right now," Delsin told him.

"But I'm worried what I'll do _now_ and what that'll bring later," Eugene responded.

"Well… then you should… think… happy thoughts?" Delsin said, losing his argument.

"Happy thoughts? Really?" Eugene said.

"I'm out of ideas so yeah," Delsin told Eugene as he zoomed out of the building in a purplish-blue flash. Eugene sighed and looked around him. Next, he held out his hand and a baby-blue light cloaked it. Seconds later, a creature materialized from the ground up. It was dressed in a knight's fashion, held a large sword with the blade pointed down, and bore two large, feathered wings.

"I'm heading out, and I don't know when I'll be back. Seal up the dominion and hide my machinations," Eugene ordered.

"As you wish my lord, may the ancients grant you good fortune," the angel replied. Afterwards, the angel took off into the sky. Several minutes later, the three conduits had arrived at the market and were waiting for Sam.

"Come on! Where is he?" Fetch moaned while scanning the area.

"Chill Fetch, more than likely Sly's gonna' walk up to us in a disguise or walk down along the side of a building on a cable or something sneaky like that," Delsin told her. No sooner had he said that, then the loud honking of a car horn erupted from across the street. The three of them looked toward the honking car and saw Sam in the driver's seat of a black minivan with another man sitting in the passenger side seat.

"Sliding down a building? Really?" Fetch scolded while walking towards the car with Eugene following her. Delsin took a long look at the car, with the others a few feet ahead of him.

"You've got to be kidding," he said to himself while starting to walk in that direction. The three of them got into the car and stared at the stranger in the passenger seat.

"Guys, this here is Bentley Sampson," Sam said while gesturing towards the passenger seat, "He's my partner and helped me get you two out."

"You don't look like a dupe trooper," Fetch observed.

"That's because I'm not. I'm a D.U.P. engineer. I worked on the conduit scanning stations that you've seen around Seattle," Bentley explained.

"You mean all the ones I destroyed?" Delsin asked mockingly.

"Yes. However, none of us would have suspected that you and _only_ you could drain its energy, like you did with the core relays and drones," Bentley commented.

"I don't know what powered those things, but it sure helped," Delsin said looking at his hand while smoke snaked through his fingers.

"It's a unique chemical mixture that catalyzed through the addition of gamma radiation and ultraviolet light, but we simply call it ray field energy," Bentley told him.

"Sounds deadly," Delsin added.

"That's why it's so unique, under any other circumstances, any mixture involving gamma radiation or ultraviolet light would be fatal when coming into contact with us directly or even through oxygen," he explained, "However it's proven to be an extremely reliable source of energy to power our equipment."

"Are you guys done yet? We're nearing the M.C.C. now," Sam said, sounding annoyed.

"Fine I'll shut up," Bentley said while turning his attention to the road in front of them.

"What's an M.C.C. Sly?" Delsin asked.

"Oh it's only the largest and most expensive vehicle you've been blowing up," Sam snapped.

"Oh! A mobile command center, why didn't you just say that?" Delsin replied.

"Do you have an off-switch D?" Fetch asked Delsin.

"If I do, I haven't found it," Delsin answered.

"Alright guys we're here," Sam said, sounding pleased. They had arrived near the edge of town where a mobile command center was hooked up to a D.U.P. four by four truck. However, the bridge was still in the water.

"How do you expect to get this to the other side?" Delsin asked.

"Well, I was hoping Eugene could make some angels to carry it across," Sam explained, looking over at Eugene. He held his head up in response to his name.

"Whadaya say Teen Angel? Think you can help the bus cross the street?" Delsin asked Eugene.

"Of course I can," Eugene answered with a hint of offense in his voice. He clenched his fists as tight as he could and they became pixelated, similar to television censorship. He raised his fists up to his chest and several angels materialized from the ground up one by one. They were armored knights wielding large swords and massive wings.

"That never gets old," Delsin said in awe.

"I ask you to carry this chariot across the raging river below," Eugene ordered.

"As you command," the angel closest to Eugene said. The angels gathered around the M.C.C. as Sam disconnected it from the truck. Bentley went inside and braced himself for the crash that was sure to happen. Roughly a dozen angels gathered around the large vehicle and grabbed onto all sorts of corners, equipment, and vents, and lifted it into the air. The angels carefully maneuvered it over the water and into a tunnel on solid ground, in under a minute. Eugene clenched his fist and waved it in front, causing half of the angels to deteriorate. The other half traveled back to carry back the truck.

As the truck was carried over, the conduits made their way across the wreckage. Delsin snaked through the rubble in a cloud of smoke, Fetch transformed into a blurred purple silhouette that zoomed over the water, Eugene disappeared and reappeared inside the tunnel, and Sam launched off of a small concrete tower into the tunnel.

As soon as everyone was across, the mobile command center was hitched to the truck, and Bentley came out, relieved.

"You alright?" Sam asked Bentley, noticing his friend's condition.

"Yeah I'm fine, and thankfully so is everything else," Bentley told him.

"Ah good. Should I drive while you talk to them?" Sam asked.

"Sounds like a plan," Bentley agreed. Sam leaned in closer.

"And remember, don't mention—"

"Ah hem!" Bentley interrupted as the three conduits sneaked up behind them.

"Alright, we ready to go?" Sam asked, changing the topic.

"I suppose so," Delsin said with a hint of suspicion in his voice. Sam hopped into the driver's side of the truck while the others went inside the mobile command center.

"Welcome to your home away from home," Bentley mocked. Looking around, the conduits saw four bunks tucked away at the end, miscellaneous computer consoles and filing cabinets, along the sides, a coffee machine, and a small table surrounded by chairs.

"Wow, so this is what a suped-up RV looks like from the inside," Delsin said, looking around. A look of disbelief materialized on Bentley's face.

"What? I've always destroyed these things, I never went in," Delsin defended. Suddenly, the four of them felt a jolt of motion, signaling that they were moving. Bentley grabbed a rolled up piece of paper and motioned the others to take a seat around the table. When they were all seated, Bentley rolled out the piece of paper in front of them. On it, were blueprints for a large compounded area. Fetch and Eugene both knew what it was in an instant.

"Is that Curdun Cay?" Delsin asked. Fetch nodded her head slightly.

"Yes, this is where we housed the conduits," Bentley answered.

"Try 'imprisoned'," Fetch snapped.

"You're right, sorry," Bentley said, feeling slightly embarrassed, "Anyway, here's the plan."


	4. CHAPTER 3 - The Hidden Conduit

A few hours later, they arrived roughly a quarter of a mile away from Curdun Cay Station; it was held in a snowy mountain-like setting. Sam, Delsin, Fetch, and Eugene left the M.C.C. and continued on foot while Bentley remained inside.

"Microphone check, one two three. You hear me Sam?" Bentley asked through his headset.

"Loud and clear Bentley," Sam responded while holding a finger to a button on his helmet, "Can _you_ hear me?"

"Yes I can," Bentley responded, "Delsin, can you hear me?"

"I feel like I'm in a Verizon commercial," Delsin answered while pressing against an ear piece.

"Fetch, Eugene, how about you two?"

"I hear you," Fetch responded.

"Check," Eugene answered.

"Excellent! You all remember the plan?" Bentley asked.

"You spent over an hour explaining it Bentley, we know what to do," Sam said while inspecting his assault rifle.

"Not to mention it's freezing out here," Delsin complained.

"Sam, Eugene, you're up. Fetch, Delsin, get into position," Bentley called. Fetch zoomed towards a large cliff overlooking the compound, Delsin ran over to the left side of the compound, and Sam and Eugene walked towards the main entrance.

"You ready?" Sam asked while they hid behind a boulder.

"Yeah I think so," Eugene told him.

"Good, let's go," Sam said as he held Eugene's hands together and strapped on a bulky machine that bound them. He then threw Eugene out of hiding and stood up. Two guards who stood watch pointed their guns towards them.

"This is private property, trespassers will be shot!" one shouted.

"Don't shoot! Don't shoot! I'm agent Sam Campbell!" he shouted back.

"What's your unit number?" he asked.

"A623," Sam responded. The man looked down at something, no doubt verifying the number.

"Open the gate!" he shouted behind him. The large gates swung open and Sam picked up Eugene by his hood and dragged him across the ground into the compound. Inside, past the gate, Sam entered a snowy courtyard surrounded by several soldiers wielding miscellaneous weapons.

"It's the angel," one of them whispered.

"How'd he take him down alone?" another whispered.

"Hurry up," Sam muttered discreetly.

"Wait for it, wait for it," Bentley replied, "Now!" Suddenly all the soldiers grasped their helmets and earpieces as a loud shriek pieced their ears. During the commotion, Sam removed Eugene's cuffs.

"Bio-terrorist out of containment!" Sam shouted while removing his helmet like the rest of the soldiers. Eugene started to pixelate as he shot himself into the air in a white explosion. He was replaced by a towering knight with large wings. Sam ran over to the radio tower.

"All troopers to the courtyard! We are under attack, I repeat, we are under attack!" he yelled as speakers throughout Curdun Cay relayed his message. Soldiers began pouring out of the buildings and witnessing the massive army of angels and demons materializing in the sky.

"Alright Delsin, you're up," Bentley told him. Delsin ran along the wall of the compound and towards a small air vent. When he got close enough, he disintegrated into a cloud of smoke and flew into the vent. A few seconds later, he materialized at the other end inside of a closet. He thrust the door open and found himself inside the main complex.

"I'm in… God it's so much warmer in here," Delsin said while holding a finger to his earpiece.

"Excellent! Fetch, are you ready?" Bentley asked.

"Oh hell yeah! Let's do this," Fetch replied.

"Alright, take out as many as you can," Bentley ordered, "We need to keep them focused on this attack." Inside the mobile command center, Bentley pulled up a live-action feed of the battle. He saw soldiers overrun by angels and purple beams of light erupting from a distance and impaling soldiers. Inside the main prison, Delsin began picking up speed as he flailed his head around; the various conduits peeked up at Delsin as he ran through the different corridors of the building.

"Power core… power core… where is the power core?" Delsin whispered to himself.

"Delsin! You were supposed to make a left when you passed the D-wing!" Bentley scolded.

"You know what? Screw it!" Delsin said before running to the nearest cell.

"Delsin! What are you doing?" Bentley asked.

"Uh… improvising," Delsin said while blasting the lock on a cell door. He opened it, releasing a pale-skinned man with spiky black hair.

"Thank you… whoever you are," he said.

"Name's Delsin, what's yours?" Delsin said quickly.

"Tj," he answered.

"Alright Tj, what's your power?" Delsin asked.

"Glass," Tj replied. Delsin looked at the glass window on his cell.

"Great! I need your help," Delsin said while heating up and destroying Tj's cuffs, "We need to free everybody else here. Can I count on you to help me?"

"Yeah… of course," Tj said while massaging his now-free hands. He then held his hand towards the window. It started to melt and reform into white sand as it was absorbed by his hand.

"That's awesome," Delsin said just before running off into another corridor.

"Delsin, there are nearly four hundred conduits, you can't possibly free them all one-by-one!" Bentley cried.

"That's what you think," Delsin called while melting another lock. What left the cell, however, startled Delsin. A man with a slight tan dressed in an orange suit walked out. He had white hair with blue streaks and pure white eyes. Delsin was almost in a trance and it wasn't until he spoke that his trance was broken.

"What's going on here?" he asked.

"Huh? Oh sorry, it's just your eyes—"

"Can you please tell me what's going on?" he insisted.

"Right, right. What's your name?" Delsin asked.

"Ashton… Ashton Pryce," he answered.

"Alright Ash, what's going on is that we're getting you out of here. What's your power?" Delsin explained while blasting his cuffs off. After flexing both hands, Ashton gestured him to look up towards a light in the ceiling. Then, he held his hand up and it began to flicker. The light itself left the lightbulb and was absorbed by his hand.

"Photonesis," Ashton answered.

"Light power, sweet!" Delsin exclaimed.

"Hey D! The boys need you out there!" Fetch called through his headset.

"I'm coming," he called back, "Listen I need your help. Can you free the others?"

"I can sure try," he said modestly.

"Thanks Ash," he said while patting him on the shoulder and running off. He ran through the maze of Curdun Cay until he found daylight, along with hundreds of D.U.P. soldiers and angels. Some turned around and saw Delsin.

"Oh Shit, it's Rowe!" one of them shouted. Several turned their heads and pointed their guns towards Delsin. He tossed a ball of ash from his hand and then transformed into a cloud of smoke and dashed through them. As this happened, the ball of ash erupted into a cloud of ash that inhabited the solders' lungs. Delsin ran up to one of them, pushed him to the ground, and bound him with smoke. He then dashed towards a man behind him and bound another D.U.P. agent to the ground. He restrained three more agents by the time the smoke settled.

"They say second-hand smoke is bad for you," he mocked while heading to another group. He pulled out his chain and whipped them until they hit the floor. He took a second to catch his breath and Sam caught a glimpse of him, and what was behind him: a D.U.P. soldier, prepping a rocket launcher. He raised it up and aimed for the unsuspecting conduit.

"Delsin!" Sam shouted while firing upon the heavy soldier. After a few shots, he fell to the ground, _after_ discharging his weapon. The rocket flew towards Delsin as he turned around in time to see it in front of him. As if on instinct, Sam clenched his right fist as hard as he could. At that precise moment, Delsin felt himself lurch back towards Sam, with his chain-hand leading the charge. The force of the rocket's impact threw him even further back until he was right in front of Sam.

"What the hell?" Delsin shouted.

"Nice dodge," Sam told him while helping him to his feet.

"I didn't, the chain dragged me," Delsin explained, "It felt like somebody yanked it."

"But I didn't see anybody—"

"Guys, I've got some bad news," Bentley called through the earpiece.

"Go ahead," Delsin told him.

"Someone's in the watchtower calling for backup. Two helicopters are already inbound," Bentley said.

"They're calling for help," Delsin told Sam. He pulled the earpiece off of Delsin and held it to his ear.

"Where are they?" Sam asked.

"Southwestern watchtower," Bentley answered.

"Alright I'm on it," he said before throwing the piece back to Delsin. He ran across the yard, taking out D.U.P. soldiers as he did. Eventually, he made it to the tower and began climbing up the steel staircase. As he did, two soldiers came down wielding rifles. They pointed their guns at him and he held up his right hand in front of his face and closed his eyes. Then, their guns deconstructed themselves and bits of metal flew and surrounded his hand. When he opened his eyes, he saw bits of plastic fell down the stairs as bullets surrounded his forearm, metal plating covered exposed skin, and a barrel hovered at each end of his hand. As if flexing a muscle, he pointed his hand at the agents and bullets positioned themselves inside the barrel. They launched forward with the same velocity as an assault rifle, and he filled the two agents with bullets twice as fast. They slumped to the ground and Sam examined his arm.

As he unclenched his fist, the bits of metal and bullets traveled up his arm and compacted itself into an armored shoulder bandoleer. Suddenly, he looked up and remembered what was happening. He ran up the rest of the stairs and reached the balcony. He saw an armored man holding a walkie-talkie to his ear. As soon as he saw Sam, the agent assumed he was there to help him.

"Don't worry, help is on the way!" he shouted over the commotion. Sam clenched his fist and pointed it towards the man. He held his hands up in a confused and scared manner.

"Call em' off," Sam ordered, "Now!" With a completely straight face, he held the walkie-talkie to his mouth.

"Hawk three, hawk four, do you read?" he asked.

"Yes, what are your orders," a pilot asked.

"Open fire!" he shouted. Sam grabbed the man by the collar and threw him into the stairwell. He slid his hand to the left and the rail ripped off the wall and pinned the agent to the ground. He picked up the walkie-talkie laying by his feet.

"Cease fire! Cease fire!" Sam called out.

"Who's this? What's your unit number?"

"A623!" Sam answered.

"Request denied, your D.U.P. privilege has been revoked," he replied, a few seconds later.

"Wow, that was fast," he quipped. At that moment, Sam heard the unmistakable sound of missiles being launched. He looked outside the tower and saw two missiles flying towards the towering angel. They hit him dead-on and he fell to the ground.

"Eugene!" Sam shouted. As Fetch impaled one helicopter, Sam began feeding bullets to the other. He filled the glass cockpit with holes as the pilot chose his next target. He prepped his arsenal and launched two missiles towards the tower. From the ground, the fallen angel cupped his hands together and shot a blue beam into the second helicopter. It sheared the aircraft in two and the front half flew towards the southwestern watchtower. Suddenly, Sam had a vision. He saw himself flying in the air, held up by flames projected out of his hands. He knew what to do.

He held both hands out in front of him and the two missiles began shaking. The heads popped off and flames no longer shot out of the tails. They approached his hands and began deconstructing. They transformed into miscellaneous parts and attached themselves to his wrists. As the cockpit flew towards him, he jumped. It scraped the top of the tower and landed outside the main compound, smashing into the side of a mountain. Sam forced his hands downwards and the tail of each missile reformed on his hand connected to cords and wire lined with metal. He hovered briefly in the air as he struggled to gain control over his new ability. Shortly after, he was only a few feet from the ground and his thrusters deactivated. When he landed, they slid up his arm and formed bracers. He flicked his right wrist and his shoulder plate transformed into a double-barreled assault rifle at the end of his hand. He began firing upon the D.U.P. forces as Delsin dashed up to him.

"Sly! What's with all the metalwork?" he asked, while cloaking others in smoke.

"Couldn't tell you!" Sam replied.

"Bentley said they're sending in APCs!" Delsin told him.

"Tell Fetch to take care of them!" Sam ordered.

"Fetch! There're APCs coming in, can you take 'em out?" Delsin asked.

"Oh, I'll give them somethin' to bitch about," she said sharply.

"Atta girl," Delsin told her. With that, she ceased fire on the D.U.P. and kept an eye out for vehicles.

"DELSIN! I CAN'T SUMMON ANY MORE SUPPORT! I MUST RECHARGE!" the towering angel boomed.

"Damn it! What do we do Sly?" Delsin asked.

"Just give me a minute," Sam scolded while scanning the area. He saw two fallen soldiers, but he was more interested in their weapons. They both had RPGs laying at their sides. "Alright, hand me your earpiece." Deslin did as he was told and Sam slid it onto his ear.

"Fetch, you hear me?" Sam called.

"Didn't we go through this bit already?" she replied.

"Listen, I need you to help keep the angels in the air for as long as possible. I'm gonna' take care of the APCs," Sam ordered.

"How?" she snapped.

"Just trust me," he called back. Seconds later, the purple beams of light returned to flood the complex. He turned back and faced the rocket launchers. He reached out his left hand and bits of metal loosened and reattached themselves to his arm just as before, with two rockets primed.

"What was that?" Delsin exclaimed.

"I'll explain later," Sam shouted while running out of the complex.

"Delsin! Where are you going?" Bentley asked through the headset.

"It's me Bentley! Please tell me they haven't made it across the steel bridge," Sam told him.

"No, but they're getting close," he replied.

"Then I need to borrow the truck," he said while running towards the command center. When he got there, he quickly undid the winch that held the command center to the truck with his new power. He then flung open the driver-side door, dug around the glove box for the keys, started the ignition, and drove off in the opposite direction of Curdun Cay.

He hit the gas and sped towards the bridge. He arrived there in mere minutes. It was made primarily of steel and was the size of a highway overpass. He left the truck and walked towards the bridge. He looked down towards the snowy chasm that the bridge crossed. Seconds later, several APCs began crossing the bridge, each one equipped with automatic turrets. He pointed his hand forward with the two rockets primed. He launched one and it flew towards the closest APC. It annihilated the front half as the rest of it came to a screeching halt. A second APC pushed through the debris and sped towards Sam while the auto turret spit bullets. He ducked left while launching another rocket. It flew and disassembled the vehicle, leaving the auto turret on top intact. The hood flew off and landed near Sam's feet. The turret repositioned itself and faced Sam. At that moment, he glanced at the detached hood and an idea took hold.

He reached out his hand and the hood flew towards him, altering its shape as it approached him. It attached itself to his hand as the rocket launchers transformed and slid up just behind his thruster-bracer. The car hood spread out in front of him like a shield. The auto turret fed bullets into the shield as Sam held his ground. The force of the bullets started pushing him back. However, it wasn't long before the turret began overheating and exploded. He looked up past the shield and saw the destruction on the bridge. He relaxed his hand, causing the shield to split into pieces and wrap themselves around his left leg. However, his victory was short-lived.

Out of the smoke, drove two more APCs, side-by-side. Out of that despair, another idea grew. He stood strong and held both hands out. He looked as though he was gripping invisible objects. At that point, a loud creaking noise filled the sky. Sam's expression looked as though he was lifting something with great difficulty. After a few seconds of scanning through the smoke, the two turrets found their target. They turned towards him as the bridge began shaking. The main support columns for that side of the bridge were trembling. Before the turrets had a chance to fire, the columns were ripped out from underneath and pulled from the ground. He then clenched his fists and the columns crumpled and fell apart, causing half the bridge and everything on it to fall into the chasm.

As the dust settled, Sam's strength left him and he found himself out of breath. He fell onto his knees and braced himself on his hands.

"What… the hell?" Sam muttered to himself. When his mind returned from the battle, Bentley's voice echoed in his head. It grew louder and louder until he realized that it was coming from his ear piece.

"Sam! Do you read me?" Bentley shouted.

"Yeah… I'm… I'm here," he answered in between breaths.

"Thank God, I thought something happened to you!" Bentley told him.

"You have no idea!" Sam said, almost laughing. Then something else tugged on his ears. He heard the sound of rotating propellers just above him. He looked up to see several large helicopters flying towards Curdun Cay.

"Sam, we have a problem," Bentley relayed.

"I see it, choppers," Sam replied.

"We need you back here ASAP!" Bentley ordered.

"Roger that," Sam said while walking back to the, surprisingly still intact, truck. He slammed the door and revved the engines as he sped back towards Curdun Cay. He flew across the landscape as the helicopters flew just overhead. Close to ten choppers hovered over the station as D.U.P. troopers slid into the complex down wired harnesses. Sam punched the gas as he approached the gate. On the inside, soldiers surrounded the exhausted conduits, with Eugene out of his angel form and Fetch pinned as well. They beat up the conduits as they escaped the prison building.

Sam was mere feet away from the main gate when he reached top speed. Seconds later, He broke through the concrete barrier and was now inside the main complex. Weakly, Sam stepped out the truck, and found himself surrounded by D.U.P. soldiers.

"Hands up wrecking ball!" one soldier ordered. He put his hands up as he was told and walked up the massive pile of rubble. Suddenly, his metallic armor began shaking.

"Shit! He's a bio-terrorist!" another shouted. Sam looked at the imprisoned conduits who were beaten to the ground and the soldiers who were doing it. As he stared more at the scene, the metal shook more violently. Then, his armor shattered into hundreds of little pieces and orbited his body

"Shoot him!" the first soldier ordered. At that moment, Sam flexed his hands and the little pieces flew at breakneck speed and impaled each soldier. The pieces then flew back and impaled them again. This time, the pieces stayed inside each soldier as he raised his hands into the sky. Each soldier became suspended in midair, held up by the chunk of metal inside them. He lifted them close to twenty feet in the air, with some of them almost hitting the helicopter blades. Then he relaxed his hands and they plummeted to the ground. Bullet sized pieces stayed inside each trooper, pinning them to the ground, as the rest of the metal left their bodies and returned to Sam's. He then shot the engine of one of the helicopters with his dual rifles and smoke clouded the backend.

"Delsin now!" Sam shouted. Delsin dashed towards the bullet-fed helicopter and climbed up the wired harness. When he reached high enough, the helicopter began gaining altitude and Delsin absorbed the smoke billowing from the engine. He dashed away from the chopper and suspended himself in air by shooting a stream of smoke from one hand while aiming at the chopper with the other. After a few seconds of consideration, he launched a cinder missile towards the damaged engine. When it made contact, the entire back half exploded, sending the other half spiraling out of the complex. The other choppers started to leave as Delsin landed safely on the ground.

"They're getting away!" Delsin shouted. Then, white orbs of light flew towards a helicopter and sheared right through the metal. They looked back to see a white-haired, pale-eyed young man launching the projectiles at the target. After a few more hits, the helicopter lost control and fell to the ground. The remaining eight choppers started flying away.

"If they get away, our mission will be compromised!" Bentley snapped. They soon got out of range of any conduit's attacks, except for one.

"Delsin! You have your phone handy?" Sam asked.

"Uh, I don't think Google can help us," Delsin replied.

"Give it to Eugene!" he ordered. Delsin tossed it towards Eugene just as he stood back up.

"Think you can drain that?" Sam asked after he caught it.

"Yeah, yeah I can," Eugene answered.

"Then do it!" Eugene grasped the phone tightly and the screen began to flicker in his hand. The pixels left the phone and were transferred to his hand. He then dropped the phone, transformed into an angel, and flew towards the remaining of the helicopters. Delsin picked up his phone and examined it for damage: he found nothing. However, he couldn't turn it on. He glared at Sam.

"What?" Sam asked.

"I swear if this messes up my scores…" Delsin replied. Outside, Eugene caught up to the choppers and shot them down one-by-one. He then returned to Curdun Cay and switched back to his normal form. The four of them traded glances with one another. They had done it. They liberated Curdun Cay. They had freed the conduits inside. Sam faced towards the rubble and the other three approached him.

"Well… we did it," Fetch said tiredly.

"Yes… yes we did," Sam replied turning around and looking at the main building.


	5. CHAPTER 4 - The Secret of Curden Cay

Soon enough, all of the previously locked-up conduits had gathered in the courtyard. Many conversed with one another, comparing powers and stories. Others scanned the area, taking in what was around them. Sam, Delsin, and the others were scattered about, checking on the prisoners. A few minutes later, they met up near the main gate.

"Everybody accounted for?" Sam asked.

"Cells are all empty," Delsin answered.

"Good, you hear that Bentley?" Sam replied.

"Yep, I'm on my way," Bentley told him.

"See you in a bit," Sam responded. Delsin walked up to Sam.

"So… what's happening?" he asked, gesturing towards the metal surrounding Sam's body.

"Um…" he stammered while looking down at himself, "You're guess is as good as mine."

"Is this your actual power? Ya know, before Augustine gave you hers?" Delsin suggested.

"I don't know," Sam spoke honestly. Seconds later, they saw Bentley walk into the compound with a large metal container.

"Hey Sly, what's with the box?"

"Salvage. We want to recover data samples and DNA tests on all of the people here," Sam answered.

"Gotcha," Delsin replied before turning around to see Ashton talking to another conduit on the ground, "I'll be right back." He slowly jogged towards the pale conduit.

"Hey Ash!" Delsin called out. Ashton turned around in response.

"Delsin! Are you okay?" he asked him.

"I'm fine, thanks," Delsin responded, "And thanks for your help back there."

"No problem," Ashton told him.

"Listen, you should—"

"Yo Delsin! We need you!" he heard Fetch call out.

"I'm coming!" he shouted before turning back to face Ashton, "Stay right here, I'll be right back."

"Sure thing," Ashton replied. Seconds later, Delsin found himself next to Fetch and the others.

"What's up?" Delsin asked.

"We want you three to keep an eye on the conduits while we collect what we can," Sam answered.

"Sure thing Sly," Delsin replied.

"Great! You ready Bentley?" Sam asked as Bentley set down the heavy box.

"Seriously?" he whined, picking up the box again and trudging towards the main structure with Sam following close behind, "You're gonna' put me in a wheelchair." Sam only rolled his eyes at him. The two entered the main building. After going through a couple different hallways and corridors, they finally arrived at a large office space.

"How long do you think we have?" Sam asked.

"Before what?" Bentley replied.

"Before those kids get curious," he explained while rummaging through different drawers.

"Ten… maybe fifteen minutes tops," Bentley estimated while sitting at a computer desk waiting for it to load.

Meanwhile, outside the main buiding, Delsin, Fetch, and Eugene noticed all of the conduits began looking at them for several moments before conversing with one another. However, despite however long their conversation was, their gaze always returned to their saviors.

"Are they freaking out anyone else?" Eugene asked.

"Yeah, what's their deal?" Delsin asked.

"They're antsy," Fetch answered, "They wanna get out of here."

"Then why don't they?" Delsin asked.

"They're waiting for us to take them away from here," Fetch explained.

"Aren't Sly and Bentley gonna—"

"Sam… call him Sam," Fetch interjected.

"Aren't _Sam_ and Bentley gonna take them outta here?" Delsin rephrased.

"They should, we can go ask them," Fetch suggested.

"But they said we need to stay here and watch the conduits," Eugene argued. At that, Delsin began swiveling his head around the complex until he found two conduits talking to each other.

"Tj! Ash!" he called out. The respective conduits turned their heads in Delsin's general direction and he gestured them to come over. Once they arrived, Delsin was the first to speak.

"Fetch and Eugene, Tj and Ash. Tj and Ash, Fetch and Eugene," Delsin introduced. Tj and Ashton awkwardly waved to Fetch and Eugene as the later found themselves transfixed on Ashton. Delsin immediately noticed this.

"It's impolite to stare guys," he whispered while in between the two and shaking their shoulders. Ashton overheard Delsin's comment and let out a slight chuckle.

"So what's up Delsin?" he asked.

"Huh? Oh yeah," he replied while returning to the conversation at hand, "Can you two stay here and look after everyone while we head inside?" Both Eugene and Fetch swerved their head at hearing Delsin's question.

"I… suppose so, is everything alright?" Ashton asked.

"Yeah, we just want to know what's going on and see if they need any help," Delsin explained.

"They?" Tj asked.

"The two guys who were just here, they led this whole thing to liberate this place," Delsin told him. Tj nodded in understanding, but kept a look of skepticism.

"You guys do your thing, we'll watch over them," Ashton promised.

"Great! Thanks again," Delsin replied while walking towards the main building with Fetch and Eugene at his side.

"Who would've thought? After all this time, we've become the wardens of Curden Cay," Ashton illustrated, nudging Tj's shoulder.

"I don't know, this whole situation doesn't feel right," Tj commented once the others were out of earshot.

"What do you mean? You think Delsin's hiding something?" Ashton questioned.

"Not him, the two guys he was talking about."

"What about them?"

"You saw them! They were D.U.P. agents!"

"So?"

"So? You knew what they were like; they always had something else on their mind, something that we should know but never did," Tj explained. Ashton took a few moments and pondered the situation at hand. At the same time, Tj unexpectedly changed the topic.

"You know… if Storm and Cyclops had a baby, it would be you," he commented.

"What?" Ashton asked after taking a moment to process the comment.

"Ya know, X-men? Mutants?" Tj said while attempting to jog his brain, "Super heroes? Comic boo—"

"Ya I got that," Ashton replied, slightly irritated.

"Just making sure," Tj responded quickly.

Meanwhile, inside the main building, the three conduits, slowly and quietly, began exploring the corridors.

"This place seems smaller than I remember," Fetch quipped.

"I was expecting this place to be primarily concrete, not metal," Delsin commented, "Also, I didn't think it was going to be this high-tech."

"Supposedly, this was a secret military base before Augustine got a hold of it," Eugene added.

"Really? Like… aliens?" Delsin joked.

"More like testing biological weapons," Eugene explained, ignoring Delsin's humor. They continued walking down the hallway until Fetch stopped at a door.

"Guys," she whispered. When she got their attention, she gestured them to her and they all pressed their ears to the door. There was no mistake, all three of them heard Sam's and Bentley's voices. Unfortunately, the sound was too muffled to actually make any sense of what they were saying. Fetch, growing impatient, opened the door just enough so they could understand what they were saying.

"I don't get it, are you sure it's in this room?" Sam asked, sounding frustrated.

"It should be, this was the old lab," Bentley explained. Delsin mouthed the word "lab" at Fetch and she shrugged.

"Well, did _you_ find anything," Sam asked.

"Just a bunch of studies and experiments," Bentley replied, looking at the files on the computer desktop.

"What about?" Sam asked, still digging around the room.

"Looks like…," Bentley started while clicking on one of the files. However, what he saw, he almost couldn't comprehend, "No… no it couldn't be."

"Why? What is it?" Sam asked, halting his search.

"They're _all _on John White," Bentley answered.

"What?" Sam asked in disbelief as he walked towards the computer Bentley was looking at, "What are the dates on those?"

"The most recent," Bentley began as he perused the files, "was two weeks ago."

"Download everything you can Bentley," Sam ordered as he took a step back. Bentley plugged in an external hard drive and began the file transfer. As soon as that began, Bentley assisted in searching the room. While their search continued, the three conduits just outside the door stepped away from it.

"Who's John White?" Delsin asked.

"Maybe he was a prisoner here?" Eugene suggested.

"I doubt it, no prisoner went under _that_ much testing," Fetch countered, "Plus they seemed surprised at the date."

"Yeah, like it was too recent," Delsin added. Fetch nodded.

"Personally though, I'm more interested in what they're looking—"

"Sam! I think I found something over here," Bentley cried out. The three conduits returned to their positions at the door. Fetch opened the door a little bit more, just enough to let her see into the room and what they were doing. Both were pushing a bookcase along the wall, revealing what was behind it: a large metal door with a touch pad in the center of it.

"Son of a bitch, handprint recognition?" Sam exclaimed, "I thought you said it wouldn't be that complicated.

"Technically, it _isn't_ that complicated, you just put your hand on it and the door opens," Bentley corrected.

"Alright, where do we get a hand? None of these soldiers have that type of clearance," Sam asked, frustrated.

"Wait a second, Sam look," Bentley gestured up towards the ceiling just in front of the door using his head. Sam looked up and immediately understood what he meant; it was a vent.

"No, no way! We can't let any of them near this thing!" Sam argued.

"What choice do we have? If we don't retrieve this—"

"If we let them have this, who knows what might happen! We can't let them—" Sam was interrupted by the sound of a door opening slowly. Both of them turned their heads towards the trio in the doorway.

"How long have you been standing there?" Sam asked in a fatherly manner.

"Long enough to know you need his help," Fetch replied, pointing at Delsin. Sam sighed in defeat and ran his hand through his hair.

"Alright Delsin, can you fly through this vent and unlock the door?" Sam asked.

"Of course I can, but what's the catch?" he wondered while walking towards them.

"Don't touch anything else, only unlock the door," Sam snapped. Delsin nodded and positioned himself just below the vent. He then transformed into a cloud of smoke and was propelled into the vent. A few seconds later, he exited the ceiling vent on the other side of the door and reformed.

"Alright Delsin, now just open the door," Sam called from the other side. However, Delsin wasn't listening. He was transfixed by what was in front of him. There was a large glass case, and inside of that case, was a metal sphere with a small blue disk-shaped light in the center.

"Hey Sam? What's with the disco ball?" Delsin called out.

"Delsin, listen to me! Open this door now! Whatever you do, DON'T TOUCH THAT SPHERE!" Sam shouted.

"Why what is it?" Delsin asked.

"OPEN THE DOOR DELSIN!" Sam repeated, "THAT'S AN ORDER!"

Karmic Event – Delsin Rowe

Time started to slow down for Delsin Rowe, as he considered the situation at hand.

Good: _The right thing to do would be to listen to Sam. Right? Who knows what the hell this thing even is? It may be some sort of bomb or special weapon used to hunt and kill conduits. Maybe Sly's only trying to protect me? All I would have to do is unlock this door and I can ask whatever questions I have._

Evil: _Although, he may be hiding something. He sounded more afraid than anything. If it is a weapon used against conduits, it should be in the hands of conduits. I could use this opportunity to show that I was the one who defeated Augustine, not him. I should be the one in charge. It would only take a few shots the shatter this case and grab this thing._

_Author's Note_

_Here's how my story is going to work; every now and then, in order to keep the feel of an inFAMOUS game, I will include karmic events. Right now I'm planning on including an event for each main character: Delsin, Fetch, Eugene, Sam, and possibly, Bentley. In each case, the character has an inner conversation much like Cole did in the first game. __Immediately following a chapter that includes a karmic event, there will be two, shorter, chapters: one for the good ending and the other for the evil ending of the event. For Example: the following chapters will both be called Ch 5, but one will explore Delsin's decision to unlock the door while the other will explore his decision to activate the "strange device". If you like this, don't like this, or have thoughts on how to improve the idea, please feel free to PM me and give me your feedback._


	6. CHAPTER 5 - The Mission (Good)

"Alright, how do I get this thing opened?" Delsin asked as he turned around and faced the door.

"There should be a terminal on your side too," Bentley called out. On his side, Delsin indeed saw a terminal mounted on the wall. However, this one had a keypad with numbers attached to it. Delsin pressed the ENTER key near the bottom and the screen lit up with eight squares in the middle.

"I need a password over here!" Delsin called back.

"Zero five," Bentley began.

"Okay."

"Twenty-six."

"Okay."

"Twenty."

"Alright."

"And zero nine," Bentley concluded. As soon as he typed in those last two digits, Delsin again hit the ENTER key and the eight boxes disappeared. They were then replaced by two larger boxes the lied on top of each other. One box held the word "OPEN" and was highlighted while the box below had the word "CLOSE" and wasn't highlighted. Delsin hit the "OPEN" button and the door slid upwards into the ceiling. Once they were clear, Sam ran passed Delsin and to the strange device.

"I don't get it, why couldn't we just break down the door?" Fetch asked Bentley.

"Because the room on the other side was rigged to blow," he explained.

"Wait what?" Delsin exclaimed while walking out of the room.

"If anything happened to the door, it would trigger explosives and you could kiss everything on that side good bye," Bentley continued.

"You could've said something before I went in there," Delsin argued.

"Bentley, bring the crate over," Sam called.

"On it," he called back before redirecting his attention towards Delsin, "But if I had told you, you wouldn't have gone in there." Delsin rolled his eyes as Bentley brought over the crate to the machine.

A few minutes later, they had brought the box, and the flashdrive they hooked up, back to the Mobile Command Center and they all, save Sam, gathered around the table as Bentley took apart the machine and examined it. Sam, meanwhile, leaned against the M.C.C. outside. Fetch started to fall asleep in the warm R.V. as Eugene appeared to be the only one remotely interested in what was happening. Delsin, bored out of mind, decided to leave and spend time with Sam. As he reformed on top after traversing through the vent, Sam didn't even appeared phased.

"What's up Sly?" Delsin asked as he jumped down next to him.

"I'm... I'm sorry for snapping at you before. That was completely inappropriate of me," Sam apologized.

"Wouldn't be the first time, I'll tell you that much," Delsin quipped. Still, he appeared indifferent. "What is that thing anyways?" Sam sighed.

"It's called the Ray Shpere," he explained, "It's responsible for… well all of it."

"All of what?" Delsin asked.

"All conduits."

"Sam! You need to get in here!" Bentley called from inside. Both of them entered and stood around Bentley's worktable.

"What is it?" Sam asked.

"_Not_ this," he motioned towards the disassembled Ray Sphere with a screw driver in his hand.

"What do you mean?" Sam asked, confused.

"I mean, it's not the R.S.," Bentley explained. Sam only appeared more puzzling.

"What the hell is an R.S.?" Fetch cried out, sounding irritated.

"Ray Sphere," Delsin answered. Bentley scowled at Sam.

"They should know, they did help us recover it after all," Sam defended.

"No, they didn't," Bentley scolded, "They helped us recover a tracking device."

"Listen Bentley, there's no need to keep them in the dark," Sam continued.

"No, I'm serious! This… isn't the R," he started before correcting himself, "This isn't the Ray Sphere, it's a tracking device!"

"What does it track?" Delsin asked.

"Conduits!" Bentley exclaimed, "I can't believe I didn't see this sooner!"

"See what?" Fetch asked, yawning.

"Well… obviously, not all of the captured conduits were called in by other people. The D.U.P. needed a way to flush out hiding conduits. Some of the lead analysts claimed to have developed a series of algorithms to help predict conduit locations," Bentley explained.

"And they were right every single time," Sam added.

"This makes infinitely more sense," Bentley continued pointing to the 'Ray Sphere', "This is used to track concentrated amounts of gamma radiation, the specific concentration only found in the conduit gene. The scanner can be altered to track one or a large group of conduits or even—"

"The Ray Sphere itself!" Sam interjected.

"_Can_ you locate it?" Delsin asked.

"Already did," Bentley replied while appearing to be crestfallen.

"Well? Where is it?" Sam asked.

"It never left," Bentley answered. Sam suddenly appeared the same way as he ran his hand through his hair. He took a moment to absorb what he heard.

"We're going there aren't we?" Bentley asked.

"I don't see how we have a choice," Sam replied.

"Hey, Earth to dupes, you mind filling us in?" Fetch interjected.

"Empire City, it's in Empire City," Bentley informed.

"You mean—" Eugene began.

"Where it all started," Sam said coldly.

"So… we're going to Empire City?" Delsin asked.

"If by 'we' you mean me and Bentley," Sam countered.

"What?" Delsin whined.

"Listen, I want to thank you guys for all your help, but this is where we part ways."

"No!" Eugene exclaimed.

"You can't be serious," Fetch added.

"Guys, this is going to be extremely dangerous, and illegal,"

"Please Sam, do you honestly think we care about the law?" Fetch asked.

"I… do," Eugene said quietly.

"We can handle it Sam," Fetch reiterated, ignoring Eugene's comment. Sam pinched the area between his eyes as he sighed deeply.

"They _could_ help us," Bentley pitched.

"Whose side are you on?" Sam snapped.

"The side that wants to get that Ray Sphere," Bentley replied. Sam sighed once more and looked at the group standing around the table.

"You guys really want to help out?" Sam asked. All three nodded their heads.

"Alright fine, looks like we're going on a little road trip," Sam said, surrendering.

"What about the other conduits?" Eugene asked.

"That's right! I almost forgot! You guys need to go out there and tell them that they'll be picked up," Bentley informed.

"By who?" Delsin asked.

"Fellow D.U.P. renegades; they're gonna get them settled down and ready for societal re-entry," Bentley answered. Delsin gave him a weird look.

"Don't worry, it's not as bad as it sounds," Sam assured. With that, the three of them went back to the conduits, who primarily returned to the warmth of the inner compound, and informed them of their impending release from Curden Cay. Meanwhile, Sam made his way to one of the garages and commandeered another four by four. As the group reformed again at the M.C.C. and the truck was hooked up, the gang began their trip to the city where demons are born: Empire City.


	7. CHAPTER 5 - The Plan (Evil)

After taking one final look at the door behind him, Delsin began his assault on the glass case. It wasn't very long before the case shattered, exposing Delsin's prize.

"DELSIN! OPEN THIS GOD DAMN DOOR! YOU HEAR ME?!" Sam shouted on the other side. Completely ignoring him, Delsin picked up the machine and held it firmly in his hands. After closer examination, he saw it was actually two semi-spheres with a central disc that was slightly smaller in circumference than the rest of the sphere. He also saw a blue light escaping a large gap in the top of one half and a pressure-switch at the top of the other half. Using one hand, he held down the switch, and found the ability to rotate one half ever so slightly, before pushing both halves together, consuming the smaller disc.

"DELSIN!" Sam's voice echoed in his head as he seemed to trail off. In a matter of minutes, Delsin saw every single conduit alive! To him, it was a blurry vision, similar to when he tapped into a conduit's powers. First, he saw himself, then the conduits scattered around the compound of Curden Cay, then miscellaneous conduits scattered around the country, then around the world, and finally, his vision was centralized in a single location: a small island city just off the coast of New York. He saw the remains of buildings used as walkways, several conduits scattered within the city, and the object he held, sitting at the center: the Ray Sphere. His vision died out as quickly as it began and the entire world faded to black.

"Delsin!" echoed in his head.

"Delsin! Delsin, get up!" he heard again, this time clearer.

"DELSIN!" shouted a voice, startling Delsin and forcing him out of his unconscious state. Sam, standing over him, sighed in relief as he stood back. The others were in a state similar to Sam's as Delsin slowly started to come around.

"What happened?" he asked, groggily. Sam started to involuntarily chuckle.

"What happened?" Sam mocked, pulling up Delsin by the collar of his shirt, "You disobeyed me! You did the one thing I told you not to do!" Sam shouted while pushing Delsin back. "And because of you, Bentley is…" Sam began, looking over at Bentley who was simply standing there, "Perfectly fine," Sam finished, sounding confused. Delsin took this time to look around, he was still in the same room he found the machine in. However, it looked like the door was yanked off its hinges.

"How'd you get in here?" Delsin asked.

"When you… activated that thing, everything in this room went dark," Bentley explained, "So Sam pried off the metal door and bypassed the security system that would've blown everything there sky-high."

"How did you know that would work?" Delsin asked Sam.

"I didn't," he replied, irritation still present in his voice. Bentley sensed the palpable tension in the air and decided to move on.

"Well, let's get this back to M.C.C. and I can examine it closer," Bentley suggested, bringing over the crate. With that, they stored the device, grabbed the drive they hooked up, and headed back outside.

While the others preferred the warmth of the supped-up RV, Delsin stayed outside, pacing back and forth. He looked back towards the compound. Many of the conduits sought shelter from the cold inside one of the main buildings. He allowed smoke to trace his hands and up his arms, providing a little warmth. However, he was startled by the sound of a metal door opening and the smoke left his body. Looking at the back of the command center, he saw Sam emerge and close the door behind him. He then leaned against the vehicle and looked over at Delsin.

"I'm sorry," Delsin said.

"What the hell were you thinking?" Sam asked.

"I was thinking that I'm not your soldier," Delsin snapped, "You can't order me around."

"You're right, you're not my soldier," Sam replied, "You're my partner." Delsin took a second to look at the ground.

"I'm sorry, it's just… you sounded like my brother," Delsin admitted, "I didn't mean to activate the Ray Sphere."

"How did you know what it was called?" Sam asked.

"You're not gonna' believe it, but… _it_ told me," Delsin answered.

"Sam? You better get in here!" Bentley called from inside the command center.

"Trust me, after the past seven years, there's very little I don't believe," he said bitterly, before entering the center with Delsin right behind him.

"What is it?" Sam asked.

"_This_ isn't it," he motioned towards the disassembled Ray Sphere with a screw driver in his hand.

"What do you mean?" Sam asked, confused.

"I mean, it's not the RS," Bentley explained. Sam only appeared more puzzling.

"What the hell is an RS?" Fetch cried out, sounding irritated.

"Ray Sphere," Delsin answered. Bentley scowled at Sam.

"They should know, they did help us recover it after all," Sam defended.

"No, they didn't," Bentley scolded, "They helped us recover a tracking device."

"Listen Bentley, there's no need to keep them in the dark," Sam continued.

"No, I'm serious! This… isn't the R," he started before correcting himself, "This isn't the Ray Sphere, it's a tracking device!"

"What does it track?" Delsin asked.

"Conduits!" Bentley exclaimed.

"That makes sense. When I turned it on, I saw a bunch of conduits all over the country," Delsin commented.

"I can't believe I didn't see this sooner!" Bentley continued.

"See what?" Fetch asked, yawning.

"Well… obviously, not all of the captured conduits were called in by other people. The DUP needed a way to flush out hiding conduits. Some of the lead analysts claimed to have developed a series of algorithms to help predict conduit locations," Bentley explained.

"And they were right every single time," Sam added.

"This makes infinitely more sense," Bentley continued pointing to the 'Ray Sphere', "This is used to track concentrated amounts of gamma radiation, the specific concentration only found in the conduit gene. The scanner can be altered to track one or a large group of conduits or even—"

"The Ray Sphere itself!" Sam interjected.

"Can you locate it?" Delsin asked, remembering his vision of the crumbling city.

"Already did," Bentley replied while appearing to be crestfallen.

"Well? Where is it?" Sam asked.

"It never left," Bentley answered. Sam suddenly appeared the same way as he ran his hand through his hair. He took a moment to absorb what he heard.

"We're going there aren't we?" Bentley asked.

"I don't see how we have a choice," Sam replied.

"Hey, Earth to dupes, you mind filling us in?" Fetch interjected.

"Empire City, it's in Empire City," Bentley informed.

"You mean—" Eugene started.

"Where it all started," Sam said coldly.

"So… we're going to Empire City?" Delsin asked.

"If by 'we' you mean me and Bentley," Sam countered.

"What?" Delsin whined.

"After the stunt you pulled today? I'm just gonna' take the three of you home,"

"No!" Eugene exclaimed.

"You can't be serious," Fetch added.

"Guys, this is going to be extremely dangerous, and illegal,"

"Please Sam, do you honestly think we care about the law?" Fetch asked.

"I… do," Eugene said quietly.

"As I was saying, you think we care about the law?" Fetch repeated, ignoring Eugene's comment. Sam pinched the area between his eyes as he sighed deeply.

"They _could_ help us," Bentley pitched.

"Who's side are you on?" Sam snapped.

"The side that wants to get that Ray Sphere," Bentley replied. Sam sighed once more and looked at the group standing around the table.

"You guys really want to help out?" Sam asked. All three nodded their heads.

"Alright fine, looks like we're going on a little road trip," Sam said, surrendering.

"What about the other conduits?" Eugene asked.

"That's right! I almost forgot! You guys need to go out there and tell them that they'll be picked up," Bentley informed.

"By who?" Delsin asked.

"Fellow D.U.P. renegades: they're gonna get them settled down and ready for societal re-entry," Bentley answered. Delsin gave him a weird look.

"Don't worry, it's not as bad as it sounds," Sam assured. With that, the three of them went back to the conduits, who primarily returned to the warmth of the inner compound, and informed them of their impending release from Curden Cay. Meanwhile, Sam made his way the one of the garages and commandeered another four by four. As the group reformed again at the M.C.C. and the truck was hooked up, the gang began their trip to the city where demons are born: Empire City.


	8. CHAPTER 6 - Roadtrip

Evening set in and the sun began to set by the time they made it to the interstate. The three younger conduits spent that time mainly reminiscing about the previous battle, while Sam, metal put away, and Bentley sat in the four by four, having their own conversation.

"I've been after this thing for three years," Sam said while driving, "And all this time, it never left Empire City."

"You're not going to _give_ it to that—"

"I've explained it to you a hundred times, I have no choice. It should be in their hands," Sam replied. Bentley redirected his attention to the road in front of them.

"And what about Delsin, Fetch, and Eugene?" Bentley asked.

"What _about_ them?"

"Now _they_ know what this is and why you're after it," Bentley hinted.

"Actually, they don't," Sam retaliated. Bentley gave him a look of disbelief.

"A: They only know what it's called, they don't know what it does, and B: they don't know why _we're _chasing it down," Sam explained.

"I thought you told Delsin in one of your little dead drops."

"I told him I was military."

"Military huh?" Bentley mocked.

"It's kinda' true… felt like the military anyway," Sam defended.

"And you don't think that's gonna' blow up in your face?" Bentley countered. Sam stayed quiet for a few seconds before responding again.

"Look, I'm dealing with this as I go. If that bridge comes up, I'll cross it. But in the meantime, let's just focus on getting the Ray Sphere," Sam concluded. As the hours passed, and the teenage conduits fell asleep in the back, the realization of this road trip finally sunk in.

"How much longer until we get there?" Sam asked Bentley. He pulled out his phone and tapped on it until he reached the GPS.

"We got about thirty-five hours left," Bentley answered.

"Should've taken a plane." Sam complained.

"Yeah, cuz' that would've worked well," Bentley replied sarcastically.

"What do you think we'll find in Empire City?" Sam asked.

"You mean other than rubble?"

"What about other conduits?"

"It's a wasteland, I'd be surprised if anybody still lived there."

"Clearly you never played Fallout." Sam insisted. Bentley rolled his eyes at him.

"What about the First Sons?" Sam asked, "You think there are any of them still around?"

"I'm sure there are," Bentley said blankly. Sam understood the message clear enough, and stopped talking in order to let Bentley get some sleep. After a few hours, close to one 'o' clock, Bentley took his turn at the wheel, stopping at the side of the road so they could switch places. Bentley continued driving until morning, stopping when Sam woke up. They pulled off to the side of the road once again and Sam walked towards the back of the RV and threw open the doors.

"Rise and shine!" he called. The three zombie-like conduits slowly left their bunks and got to their feet.

"What time is it?" Delsin asked groggily, taking out his phone.

"About six 'o' clock," Sam answered.

"C'mon Sam, at least one more hour," Fetch pleaded while yawning.

"Why even wake us up?" Delsin asked, "Shouldn't we be driving?"

"We've got about thirty-three hours, you'll be stiff as sticks if you don't exercise," Sam explained.

"Thirty-three hours?" Fetch whined.

"Stiff as sticks?" Eugene whispered.

"Exercise how, exactly," Delsin inquired.

"How do you think? Training!" he exclaimed, "Let's head off the road a little bit further so we could let Bentley get some rest." With that, the four conduits headed towards a small clearing hidden behind some trees.

"This is perfect!" Sam announced, looking at the scenery. Small patches of grass littered the floor while large trees hid their view of the freeway. "One thing I'm noticing a lack of is stealth. You three are incredibly versatile, but speed and raw strength are only going to get you so far."

"Alright, how do we change that?" Fetch asked, crossing her arms.

"Simple, I'm going to stay here, and you three are going to try and sneak up to me."

"You're kidding right?" Delsin asked as smoke snaked his curled fist.

"The idea here is disarming a target without killing him," Sam explained, "If you can take my weapon before I shoot you, you win."

"Shoot?" spoke Fetch.

"Oh come on, you guys have fast healing and this is only a handgun," Sam countered, waving a silenced nine-millimeter in front of them, "If I hit you once, you're out. That said, you can still use your powers."

"Alright I guess," Delsin agreed, "Just not the face."

"Of course," Sam assured, "Now go on, make a plan and try to take my gun." With that, the three conduits headed into the safety of the trees as they huddled together.

"Alright, how are we doing this?" Delsin asked.

"Actually, I have an idea," Eugene pitched. After a few minutes of explaining, they all got into position. Eugene was up first, he turned invisible and slowly walked up to Sam. However, as soon as he entered the clearing, his cloak expired. He materialized in front of Sam, disclosing his location. A look of disappointment materialized on his face as he held the gun up to shoot Eugene. However, before he could pull the trigger, Fetch came up from behind at light speed and tripped him. As soon as he landed face first, Delsin appeared on top of him, ready to pin him.

Once Sam came to terms with their plan, he clenched his fist and thrusted it away from his body. The action threw Delsin off of him, chain-hand leading the charge. Sam then immediately stood up and shot at Delsin. Delsin, though, transformed and dashed before he pulled the trigger. He looked around and saw that all three had vanished. He wasn't alone for very long however. Soon enough, Fetch zoomed into the clearing once more and Sam fired. The first shot went right through as the particles of light seemed to reform around the bullet. He continued firing just as Fetch was right in front of him and jumped over. He turned around and kept on Fetch as he was bombarded with smoke projectiles.

He felt his back get singed, but it wasn't until he was nailed in an unarmored part of his arm that he turned around to see Delsin running up to him. Once more, he held his gun up, only to have it stolen when Fetch zoomed in front of him. She waved the gun in front of Sam with one hand while making the shape of a gun with the other and creating a shooting motion with it.

"Nice work guys," Sam said sincerely as he grabbed his grazed arm. The next couple of hours were spent with three conduits sparing with one another while Sam supervised. After some time, Sam called time and the group headed back to the RV where Bentley stood outside drinking a cup of coffee.

"How'd it go?" Bentley asked once they were within sight.

"We kicked his ass," Delsin bragged, pointing at Sam. Sam rolled his eyes as Delsin looked over at him. It was then that Delsin noticed something odd.

"Shouldn't that have healed by now?" Delsin asked, motioning towards the wound that Delsin made while hitting Sam in the arm. Sam looked at it himself.

"No wonder it still hurts," Sam replied.

"Come inside and I'll patch you up," Bentley said while opening the door to the command center. Sam followed behind and soon enough, was brought the first aid kit. The wound, now starting to blister, was disinfected and wrapped up.

"I thought all conduits had superhuman healing," Sam said as the operation was completed.

"So did I," Bentley said while putting away the first aid kit.

"That's weird."

"That's extraordinary."

Sam raised his head at Bentley's comment, "How so?"

"Think about it, we could use this to further our knowledge about the conduit gene, specifically fast healing. That was the only thing we couldn't crack when giving powers to the D.U.P. soldiers. Now we can!"

Sam seemed confused.

"If can get samples of your DNA and samples of say… Delsin's DNA, I can compare the conduit genes of the both of you and isolate what causes conduits to heal quickly."

"Is it really that simple?" Sam asked, astonished.

"Well, I'd have to run several tests and simulations, and it would probably take a few weeks to actually understand the data and come to a conclusion, but pretty much."

"Okay, just remind me when we're done with all this," Sam said as he stood up and walked outside of the command center. Bentley nodded his head as he continued cleaning. When he walked outside, the trio jumped up.

"You alright Sam?" Fetch asked.

"Yeah I'm fine. Just no more training like that from now on." Sam replied.

"Sly, I'm so sorry. If I knew you couldn't—"

"Delsin it's okay, I didn't know either," Sam interjected.

"Sam! We should probably get going," Bentley called out after slightly opening the door.

"Okay, I'll drive," Sam replied.

"Got it, I'll sit back here and start looking at those files from Curdun Cay," Bentley remarked.


	9. CHAPTER 7 - A Change of Pace

The next twelve hours spent on the road were done so in a rather dull fashion. Sam and Bentley took turns driving on the freeway while making short stops to eat or get gas. The others took played games or laid down to keep themselves occupied. The interstate was generally clear of traffic, save for the occasional car. At that point, they were approaching the border between Illinois and Indiana.

"Hey, D? Does uh… Beatrice… know what you're doing?" Fetch asked Delsin, trying hard to remember a name.

"Huh? Oh… Betty," Delsin corrected, "I called her shortly before we started this trip. Why?"

"Just curious. I don't think any of us were prepared for how long of a trip this was going to be," Fetch replied.

"This is nothing," Bentley joined in, still working on his computer, "Once I went on a trip that lasted a week and a half."

"Where?" Delsin asked, intrigued.

"If I told you, I'd have to kill you," Bentley replied, still glued to the screen in front of him. The three conduits all looked at each other before looking back at Bentley.

"Why? The D.U.P.'s gone," Delsin asked.

"Not the… not necessarily," Bentley replied while appearing to correct himself, "What happens when the president dies?"

"The vice president takes office," Eugene answered.

"Oh crap, you mean someone else is taking over?" Delsin asked.

"Afraid so."

"Who is it?" Fetch asked.

"I don't know actually, there are a few people I could think of but—" he was interrupted when they hit a pothole, causing him to mistype on the computer, "This… isn't working." It was then that Delsin came up with an idea.

"Can we stay in a hotel?" he asked.

"What?" Bentley asked, peeking up from his computer.

"It's been a while since any of us have been in a real bed, and it might give you an opportunity to actually work." Bentley stopped working and took a second to consider the option. After said consideration, Bentley picked up a walkie-talkie and spoke into it.

"Hey Sam, come in."

"What's up Bentley?" he asked.

"Whaddaya say to spending a night in an actual room?"

"You mean like a hotel?"

"Yeah, or a motel."

"I don't know, we're short on time as it is."

"We have just over thirteen hours left, we can sleep and I can get a chance to look as these files without worrying about accidently pressing delete," Bentley argued before Delsin snatched the walkie-talkie from Bentley.

"Come on Sam, we're all super tired… and not to mention we smell like we haven't showered in days! You really want that smell in your trailer?" After a few seconds of silence, Sam finally responded.

"How much money do we have left in the stash?"

"Still above nine hundred," Bentley replied, slightly annoyed, "We haven't used that much on food and gas."

"Fine, where's the nearest one?" Sam asked. The second he said that, all four in the trailer took out their phones and tried to locate the nearest available room. After a few brief moments of searching, they settled on a motel just an hour and a half from their current location. As soon as they were able to stop, Bentley moved to the truck and took on the role of navigator. After roughly an hour and a half of driving, the group made it to the motel, parking a little ways away in an attempt to keep their vehicle hidden.

With the former D.U.P. agents leaving their gear and armor behind, the group started their trek to the motel. It was two stories tall, and had several cars parked in front of the lower-story rooms. Just above the main doors, stood a blue neon sign that read "Roadwork Motel".

"That's a… comforting name," Delsin said sarcastically.

"I dunno know, I kinda like it," Fetch replied.

"Of course you do, it's in neon," Delsin assaulted playfully.

"Let's just get us some rooms," Sam concluded. The group made their way into the lobby and were greeted by an older woman with gray hair and small eyeglasses resting easily on her ears.

"Hello there… how may I help you?" she asked politely.

"Hi, do you have any rooms available?" Sam asked in a similar manner to the woman.

"Let's check, shall we?" she replied while looking at a computer screen, "How many?"

"Two," Sam replied after a quick headcount, "Preferably next to each other."

"Well… turns out all of our first-floor rooms are occupied, does the second floor work for you?"

"That should be just fine."

"How long are you folks staying?"

"One night."

"Alrighty," she replied while looking back at the computer screen, "That comes down to one thirty five. Are you paying with cash or credit?"

"Cash," Sam replied as he dug into his pants pocket. He managed to pull out three fifty-dollar bills and handed them to the lady, "Here you are." Once the transaction was complete, the group headed towards their rooms. Sam handed a key to Delsin and they split up: Delsin, Fetch, and Eugene in one room and Sam and Bentley in the other. Both rooms had two beds, a small desk, a television, and a balcony that overlooked a small pool. As the teenage conduits began settling in, Bentley sat on one of the beds and started working on his computer while Sam went into the bathroom with clothes in hand.

"See? We all get a big rest up before the big day tomorrow," Bentley called to Sam.

"Yeah yeah," Sam sighed, admitting defeat.

"Everybody's happy," Bentley continued.

"We get it, you were right," Sam said as he stepped out of the bathroom, wearing only a shirt and swim shorts.

"Don't tell me you plan on going swimming."

"You relax your way and I'll relax my way," he replied as he started walking towards the door.

"It's already eight thirty," Bentley remarked as Sam left the room, completely oblivious to Bentley's comment. He sighed and only sat on the bed for a few minutes. However, something hit him. He closed his laptop, still on, and pulled out his phone. After a few taps on the screen he held the phone up to his ear and let it ring. When it finished, a female voice responded on the other end.

"Hello?"

"Alex, it's me Bentley," he spoke, trying to be assuring.

"Oh thank god! I've been waiting to hear from you, did you get the Ray Sphere?"

"Change of plans."

"What?"

Bentley stood up from the bed.

"The D.U.P. never had it."

"But, I thought you said—"

"It was a map. But the good news is we know where the actual one is."

"Where?"

"Empire City."

"Oh crap… do you need any help? I can send in a squad to back—"

"No, the last thing we need is unnecessary attention. Besides… I've got Sam," he remarked while walking out onto the balcony and looking into the room.

"Right, how is he anyways?" she asked, uneasy

"Focused… and right now, that's exactly how I need him. Although, I can tell that something is troubling him."

Alex began talking before she was cut off by Bentley.

"But… we aren't the only ones tracking it."

"What do you mean? Were you followed?"

"No… no they're on our side."

"Who?"

"Delsin, Fetch, and Eugene."

Bentley walked back into the room.

"Well, that… complicates things," she replied.

"As of right now, it's proven to be beneficial."

"And if they get any ideas?"

"Still working on that. In the meantime…" Bentley began before his train of thought altered, "I take it the pickup was successful?"

"Of course, all conduits are accounted for and have already been transferred."

"What about Ashton and Sebastian?"

"Separated, just like you suggested."

"Good, just keep them away from _each other_, they can be around other conduits."

"Do you really think that would've worked: her… idea?"

"I don't know, but if it did, Augustine would've only needed those two to hunt down conduits," he replied.

"After seven years of dead ends, we're finally getting results."

"Yeah, it's a nice a change of pace." Bentley agreed.

"You think you can do something for me?"

"What is it?"

"Tell Sam that I love him."

Bentley sighed and continued walking around the room before talking again.

"You know I can't do that."

"I know," she chuckled, "You're as obedient as ever."

Bentley chuckled as well.

"Well, depending on how things go in Empire City, you may see him sooner than you think."

"Think you'll need an extraction?"

"Maybe."

"Alright, where are you now?"

"About twelve hours away from the city… in Ohio."

"So… you'll be there tomorrow?"

"That's the plan. We just have to drive through Pennsylvania to the edge of New York."

"Alright, sounds good. The director's calling me, but keep me posted."

"You got it."

"Alright, bye."

"Bye," Bentley concluded while tossing his phone onto the bed with his laptop.

Meanwhile, in the other room, the exhausted conduits were already sound asleep. However, in Fetch's mind, she was wide-awake. At first there was nothing but darkness. Then there were a cluster of voices, all molding and blending together into a motley. Soon enough though, all the voices began fading out, except for one. Three words echoed in Fetch's mind, as they were spoken by Augustine.

"Then do it."

At that moment the dark faded away, and she found herself back in Curdan Cay. She sat in an arena, next to Augustine, in front of a large door that slowly opened upwards, revealing a D.U.P. soldier, and a man… a man that Fetch knew all too well: Shane.

"Fetch?" he asked out of shock.

She felt a rage she was too familiar with.

"Do me a favor honey and tell this gal that I am a one hundred percent normal American, Scout's honor."

"I already knew your story, but I had to make you relive it. To get you back at that point where you gave up." Augustine's words echoed as Fetch's anger boiled and blistered inside her.

As her words drained out, they were replaced with Shane's.

"Dammit, I am not one of those… freaks!"

Then… she snapped.

In a bright flash of neon light and blinding snow, Fetch found herself on a snowy cliff, face to face with Shane. When he was in sight, she clenched her fists and neon light snaked her wrists.

"You back off now," he ordered, pointing directly at her.

Fetch walked closer to him, the light on her hands glowing brighter.

"Damn you… I ain't afraid of no junkie."

Fetch's anger was at a max as she held out her hand and a bolt of light left her hand and connected with his left knee. He howled in pain before cupping his wound using both of his hands.

"What? That it bitch?"

"Fetch!" someone called from behind her, causing her to turn around… and find Delsin.

"Don't do this, it won't bring him back! Trust me!"

"Maybe not," Augustine replied, emerging from the blinding snow, "But it gives you something just as good: satisfaction."

"Don't listen to her Fetch!" he pleaded.

"Not only the satisfaction of him getting what he so… rightly deserves, but also the satisfaction of knowing that he won't hurt you… or anyone else again."

Fetch turned back around to face Shane.

"Fetch…" Delsin whispered.

"What's it gonna' be Abigail?" Augustine asked.

Karmic Event – Fetch Walker

Time started to slow down for Fetch Walker, as she considered the situation at hand.

Good: _This isn't what Brent would want. He told me to never use my powers, never mind using them to murder people in cold blood. This isn't the right thing Fetch, you're better than this… you're better than Shane._

Evil: _On the other hand… this asshole has gone out of his way to use, abuse, and ruin our lives. He kept Brent hostage, drugged me, and caused Brent's death. I can rip his heart out and it still won't be worth what he did to me… to us._


	10. CHAPTER 8 - Never a Monster (Good)

Fetch, despite her anger, unclenched her hands. As she did, she felt the tension leave her body.

"No, I won't do it!" she called out, tears forming.

"What?" Augustine asked as she walked up to Abigail, still facing towards Shane.

"I won't kill him," she repeated, turning to face Augustine.

"What about… everything he's done to you?" she asked, nearly whispering.

"It doesn't matter… not anymore," she replied through shallow breaths.

"It doesn't matter? It doesn't… matter?" Augustine reiterated in disbelief, "He killed your broth—"

"I killed Brent… not Shane."

"I'm disappointed in you Abigail," she replied while signaling for a sniper to shoot Shane, startling the two other conduits.

"This is what happens when you try to make monsters," Delsin called from behind Fetch and Augustine.

"And what is that?" Augustine asked in a taunting tone.

"You become a monster."

"I suppose you do have a point there," signaling again by snapping her fingers in the air. The following second was filled with another gunshot… and Delsin slumping to the ground.

"DELSIN!" Fetch screamed while running over to him. Blood oozed from the base of his neck where he was shot. She attempted to stop the bleeding by covering the wound with her hands.

"But it takes one to know one," Augustine responded, un-phased.

"No… no, no!" Fetch exclaimed, holding Delsin.

"We're all monsters, and we all deserve to be hunted," Augustine continued. Delsin's fast-healing was failing and Fetch could feel his breathing slow to a stop. At that moment, Fetch was in disbelief. Delsin laid dead in front of her.

"NOOOOOOOO!" Fetch screamed as her rage built up once again; her eyes replaced by demonic red lights. She clenched her fists and neon light snaked around her body. It quickly grew brighter and brighter until Fetch herself turned into a blinding light. Then, the world was engulfed in a purplish glow.

She woke up with her heart pounding and her breathing heavy. First she examined herself, then her surroundings. She was on top of a comforter on the floor of a motel, she agreed to sleep there, with Delsin and Eugene sleeping in the two beds. She pulled her phone out to look at the time: nine thirty-two. She took a moment to look at her two friends sleeping, especially Delsin. Afterwards, afraid to go back to sleep, Fetch decided to slip her jacket and shoes on and go outside. As she left the room, without her knowing, Delsin awoke and saw Fetch leave.

She decided to hit the pool, figuring that nobody else would be there, leaving the place to herself. She pulled up a pool chair right next to the water and sat down, simply enjoying the peace and quiet. Suddenly, she was startled by a loud splash and the appearance of a man erupting from the water. Once they made eye contact, she knew exactly who it was.

"Sam?" she called out.

"Fetch?" he called back. Sam swam towards Fetch until he was at the edge. "What're you doing out here? I thought you were asleep."

"I could ask you the same question." she snapped.

"Never was fond of hotel beds. Can't sleep in them unless I'm extremely tired," he explained.

"That's why I prefer to sleep on the floor," Fetch added.

"Bad dream huh?"

"How did you know?"

"Lucky guess… besides… you were infamous for that in Curdun Cay."

"It was Shane… my dream was about him."

"I see," Sam replied, realizing how severe it was.

"It was the day I… killed him."

"Look Fetch, you don't have to—"

"Except it was different this time," Fetch interjected, peaking Sam's interest.

"This time, Delsin was there… he convinced me not to kill him."

"You… didn't kill him?" Sam asked, surprised.

"No… Augustine killed him, and Delsin too."

"Fetch… that's great news."

"That Delsin died?"

"No… that you didn't kill Shane. You're showing that Augustine's wrong, that you're not a monster."

"How were you ever with them?" Fetch asked.

"What do you mean?" Sam asked in response.

"The dupes, why did you join those assholes?"

Sam took a few moments before answering.

"I lost someone, someone close to me… to a conduit… to a beast."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"Don't be, it was too late when it happened anyways. You still have a chance though," Sam replied while motioning his head upwards. Fetch looked in that direction and saw Delsin leaning on the balcony attached to their room.

"This wasn't supposed to be that kind of talk," Fetch snaped playfully, feeling better.

"Stop dreaming about Delsin and it won't be," Sam replied while getting out of the pool and drying himself off.

"I hate you."

"Good night Fetch," Sam replied, chuckling. Fetch stayed seated as Sam headed back inside with his shirt on and a towel wrapped around him. She then looked back at Delsin, who made eye contact. She waved at him and he waved back. Meanwhile, as Sam walked into his room, he was greeted by Bentley who was still typing away at his computer.

"Have a nice swim?" Bentley asked, preoccupied.

"There was a bit too much chlorine, but other than that it was nice," Sam replied, with Bentley completely oblivious.

"So… who were you talking to?" Sam asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Out on the balcony… I saw you on the phone," Sam explained.

Bentley stopped typing.

"Oh, it was Murray. I was calling about the pick-up," Bentley explained.

"I've been meaning to ask him."

"They're already at the distribution center."

"Good, I'm surprised at how smoothly things have gone these past couple of days."

"You have no idea," Bentley replied while returning to his computer. Meanwhile, back outside, Fetch was deep in thought. Delsin had returned to his room and Fetch, trying to clear her head, only filled it more. However, something else caught her attention. She heard the familiar sounds of sirens coming from the front of the building. She slowly got up and walked towards the wall that encircled the pool.

Fetch climbed up so she could barely see over the top. In front of the motel, was a D.U.P. APC. She ducked down just as a squad of troopers exited the vehicle and headed inside the building. Fetch rushed inside the motel and up to her room. She quietly knocked on the door and was greeted by Delsin.

"We have a problem."


	11. CHAPTER 8 - A Monster Trained (Evil)

After taking one last look at Delsin, Fetch pegged Shane in the shoulder with another neon shot. He grunted in pain while clutching his new wound with his left hand.

"I knew I shoulda' killed you straight off!" he muttered. Fetch then shot his other shoulder, eliciting more grunting. Afterwards, he slumped to the ground, falling to his knees as Fetch walked closer to him.

"Brent's dead," she softly spoke, practically leaning over him. Shane started shaking his head in response.

"I didn't kill him… you did."

Fetch's tension rose dramatically and everyone in the immediate vicinity sensed it.

"Don't do it Fetch," Delsin tried again. Ignoring his plea, Fetch grabbed Shane's head just above the neck and felt her rage build up. Her hand grew brighter as she tightened her grip around Shane's jaw. In a matter of seconds, Shane's entire face had transformed into a purplish blur. However, as her rage grew, the light surrounding Shane began to fade. Shane's hair vanished and was replaced by a short Mohawk. As the light dimmed, Shane's face had disappeared as well. When the light faded, Fetch was greeted by her brother.

"Brent?" Fetch exclaimed out of shock. She then threw her hands away from her, afraid of inflicting harm. However, she instead threw him off the cliff by mistake. As he cleared the cliff's edge, he hovered in mid-air and a purple hue surrounded him. Fetch immediately understood what was happening and panicked.

"No... no, no! she cried out.

In a single second, he was disintegrated, transformed into a cloud of dust that blew away in the wind. She was paralyzed. She couldn't speak, couldn't move, couldn't breathe. She couldn't live.

"You've… impressed me Abigail," Augustine spoke bluntly, "But I have one more task for you."

"What… the hell… is it?" she asked, easily complying with Augustine.

"Kill Delsin Rowe," she commanded. Fetch turned around to face the two of them.

"Fetch? What are you doing?" Delsin asked.

"Kill him Abigail!"

"Fetch, don't listen to her, this isn't what Brent would want."

"Kill him!"

"Brent is dead… I killed him," she whispered sincerely.

"KILL HIM!"

Those words boomed inside of Fetch's head as a bright flash appeared before her. In front of Fetch, Delsin stood clutching a singed hole in the center of his chest. He stumbled for a few seconds before falling to the ground. Fetch simply stood there, un-phased.

"Good… You're ready."

She woke up with her heart pounding and her breathing heavy. First she examined herself, then her surroundings. She was on top of a comforter on the floor of a motel, she agreed to sleep there, with Delsin and Eugene sleeping in the two beds. She pulled her phone out to look at the time: nine thirty-two. She took a moment to look at her two friends sleeping, especially Delsin. Afterwards, afraid to go back to sleep, Fetch decided to slip her jacket and shoes on and go outside. As she left the room, without her knowing, Delsin awoke and saw Fetch leave.

She decided to hit the pool, figuring that nobody else would be there, leaving the place to herself. She pulled up a pool chair right next to the water and sat down, simply enjoying the peace and quiet. Suddenly, she was startled by a loud splash and the appearance of a man erupting from the water. Once they made eye contact, she knew exactly who it was.

"Sam?" she called out.

"Fetch?" he called back. Sam swam towards Fetch until he was at the edge. "What're you doing out here? I thought you were asleep."

"I could ask you the same question." she snapped.

"Never was fond of hotel beds. Can't sleep in them unless I'm extremely tired," he explained.

"That makes two of us," Fetch replied uneasily.

"Bad dream?"

"More like the worst."

"I'm sorry," he replied sincerely.

"No Sam… _I'm_ sorry. I'm sorry that you had to hunt down monsters like me."

"Fetch… you're not a monster."

"I killed Brent, I murdered Shane, and… in my dream, I killed Delsin," she explained.

"Delsin?" Sam asked.

"He was trying to keep me from killing Shane… but I didn't listen."

"I see," Sam replied uneasily.

"Look I don't know why I'm dumping my crap on you," Fetch continued.

"Fetch, you should know that I'm always willing to take your… crap, but I think somebody else would be even more willing," Sam replied while motioning his head upwards. Fetch looked in that direction and saw Delsin leaning on the balcony attached to their room.

"I lost someone close to me," Sam continued.

"To a conduit?" Fetch assumed.

"To a beast," Sam corrected, "But _you_ still have a chance. He cares about you… you know that." Fetch sat there in silence, pondering. Sam took this as his cue to exit and got out of the pool.

"Good night Fetch," he replied Fetch stayed seated as Sam headed back inside with his shirt on and a towel wrapped around him. She then looked back at Delsin, who made eye contact. She waved at him and he waved back. Meanwhile, as Sam walked into his room, he was greeted by Bentley who was still typing away at his computer.

"Have a nice swim?" Bentley asked, preoccupied.

"There was a bit too much chlorine, but other than that it was fine," Sam replied, with Bentley completely oblivious.

"So… who were you talking to?" Sam asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Out on the balcony… I saw you on the phone," Sam explained.

Bentley stopped typing.

"Oh, it was Murray. I was calling about the pick-up," Bentley explained.

"I've been meaning to ask him."

"They're already at the distribution center."

"Good, I'm surprised at how smoothly things have gone these past couple of days."

"You have no idea," Bentley replied while returning to his computer. Meanwhile, back outside, Fetch was deep in thought. Delsin had returned to his room and Fetch, trying to clear her head, only filled it more. However, something else caught her attention. She heard the familiar sounds of sirens coming from the front of the building. She slowly got up and walked towards the wall that encircled the pool.

Fetch climbed up so she could barely see over the top. In front of the motel, was a D.U.P. APC. She ducked down just as a squad of troopers exited the vehicle and headed inside the building. Fetch rushed inside the motel and up to her room. She quietly knocked on the door and was greeted by Delsin.

"We have a problem."


	12. CHAPTER 9 - The Conduit's Deception

After explaining her encounter, the three conduits met up with Sam and Bentley in their room.

"How did they find us?" Eugene exclaimed.

"So quickly too," Sam added.

"They found our command center," Delsin explained while looking at his phone.

"How?" Sam asked.

"The same way I did," he answered while displaying his phone. On the screen, was a map with a bookmark that represented a mobile command center. Sam slowly turned his head towards Bentley.

"Bentley? Did you forget to deactivate the tracking device on our vehicle?"

Bentley took a second before responding.

"Looking back at it… I don't remember ever doing that," he answered, eliciting a sigh from Sam.

"Look, we can worry about whose fault it is later, right now, we need to leave," Fetch snapped.

"Alright, how are we doing this?" Delsin asked.

"We need to put as much distance between us and the D.U.P. as possible," Sam suggested.

"That's why we need you and Bentley to sneak out to the trailer while we keep them distracted," Fetch added.

"What?" Sam asked in disbelief.

"There's a fire escape just down the hall, if you two get a head start, we can stop the dupes and catch up with you guys," she explained.

"You sure about this?" Sam asked.

"No, but I'm never sure about anything."

"We'll be fine, go," Delsin assured.

"Alright," Sam concluded while leaving the room with Bentley, "You three _better_ catch up."

As they left, the three conduits turned to look at each other.

"So what's the plan?" Delsin asked.

"I got a little something," she said smiling.

Minutes later, the trio made their way down to the first floor. They all got into position as their plan was carried out. As Delsin approached the lobby, Fetch and Eugene warned everybody on the first floor of the D.U.P. agents. Soon enough he could hear one soldier interrogating the lady in charge of the motel.

"I'm not going to ask you again ma'am, give us their room number."

"I'm sorry, but we pride ourselves on the privacy of our customers. I cannot violate that policy," she argued.

"You're interfering with affairs regarding national security, if you do not comply, we'll have no choice but to—"

"Whoa whoa!" Delsin cried out while revealing himself to the squad of agents, "I'm right here boys, no need to get violent."

"It's Delsin Rowe!" another soldier shouted while raising his assault rifle.

"Stand down trooper," the first one ordered. Without question, the trooper obeyed. Looking at the first agent, Delsin saw that he wore very light D.U.P. riot armor without a helmet, displaying his bald head. He was also the only one without an assault rifle, for a simple handgun stood holstered at his waist.

"Where are the rebels?" he asked calmly.

"Rebels? Is _that_ what you're calling conduits now?"

"Where's Sam Campbell?"

"Never heard of him, sounds like a swell guy though."

The leader pulled out his handgun and pointed it directly at Delsin, quieting him.

"I've had enough of your nonsense," he replied bluntly.

"Alright, that's cool. You here to take me to Curdun Cay? Feel free," Delsin teased.

"You wanna be funny?" he asked, annoyed.

"Sorry, it's a defense mechanism," he replied sarcastically.

"Alright, we'll do this the hard way," he said while pointing the gun at the lady, "Now… talk."

"Hey look, I don't think you wanna—" Delsin tried negotiating while the agent pulled the trigger, purposefully missing her by mere inches.

"Alright Alright!" Delsin pleaded, "Just don't shoot!"

The agent lowered his gun.

"Hey Sam? You can come on out now, the jig is up. Sam?" Delsin stalled. Moments later, the sound of a truck could be heard. The sound grew louder and louder as everybody in the lobby was forced to look outside and see a missile come into contact with the D.U.P. vehicle, destroying it instantly. No sooner, had that happened, then a four by four hauling a mobile command center lurched out of the smoke.

Seeing the agents distracted, Delsin threw a sulfur bomb into the crowd. The bald agent turned around in time and dashed out of the door, transforming into a jumble of concrete and reforming outside. As Delsin's weapon unleashed a fume of ash, the other agents found themselves coughing and choking. During this time, Delsin ran into the cloud and subdued each agent one by one. When the smoke cleared, he noticed there was still one more.

"If it's any consolation… that wasn't part of the plan," Delsin told him, pointing at the destroyed transport.

"The rogue agents are in a M.C.C. going east on I-80," the agent informed while pressing down on an ear piece.

"Oh, you did not just do that!" Delsin snapped while running towards him. However, the agent dashed out of Delsin's reach and back into the motel lobby. Delsin then held out his hand and let concentrated bolts of smoke leave his palm. Of the few shots that made contact, none seemed to do any damage. The agent then held out his hand and bits of concrete circled Delsin. As he clenched his fist, the concrete gathered and molded around Delsin's feet.

"I'm getting really tired of this crap!" Delsin cried out as he held his hand out once more. However, a block of concrete hit his non-aiming hand and met with his other one where they were bound together.

"And I'm getting really tired of you," the agent replied while holding his gun up to Delsin and pulling the trigger. The bullet left the barrel and hit his chest. As the agent walked over to Delsin, smoke trailed across his body and towards the bullet wound, where it began healing.

"Hey!" a female cried out. Just barely outside the motel, the agent turned around to see Fetch Walker blasting neon beams towards him. After a few shots, none of them hitting him, the agent encased her hands and feet in concrete.

"You missed me," he taunted.

"Wasn't aiming for you," she replied, smiling.

Shocked, he turned around just in time to see a misshapen block of concrete come into contact with his face. With his legs freed, Delsin had run up to the agent and smacked his head using his concrete encased hands. In the process, the concrete shattered, freeing Delsin's hands. The two conduits dragged him to the wall and leaned him against it just below the neon sign. As soon as that was done, Eugene came up to greet them.

"What took you guys so long?" Delsin asked, freeing Fetch.

"When she said every room was taken, she meant it," Fetch replied.

"Oh yeah, we should probably make sure she's—"

"She's fine Delsin, we need to catch up with Sam and Bentley," Fetch interrupted.

"Alright… let's go," Delsin replied while draining the neon sign.

"Wait…" the agent muttered through bloody lips. The three turned to face him as he pulled something out of his pocket and threw it at the ground in front of them. It was a thin card with a picture of Sam's face on it, and a name: Sam Cooper. Intrigued, Delsin picked it up and looked at it. There was also an eagle on the card with the words "National Security Agency" encircling it.

"You're pal left that behind… I was here to… return it," he replied through shallow breaths.

"We don't have time for this D," Fetch explained.

"This isn't his… his name isn't Cooper" Delsin argued, ignoring the fact that the picture _was _Sam's face.

"Yeah… turns out he duped us all… pun intended," he said coldly.

"This is fake," Delsin protested.

"He _was_ N.S.A. and… they have a long history with conduits… experimenting and the like."

"Delsin he's lying, he have to go, now!" Fetch attempted.

"You only… moved them to another prison."

"No," Delsin replied.

"And imagine… what _he'll_ do… with the Ray Sph—"

Delsin jumped as a bright light engulfed the agent's face. He looked behind him to see Fetch holding out her hand, a purplish mist emanating from it.

"We need to go… now," Fetch said blankly.

"Right," Delsin replied, stuffing the card into his pocket. He followed Eugene and Fetch into the road as Eugene assumed his angel form and Fetch became a purple blur as she ran at light speed. Delsin, however, took a second to process what the agent told him before running in Fetch's footsteps, transforming into a blueish haze. The three made their way east across the highway for only a few minutes, until the mobile command center was spotted.

"OUR VESSEL IS JUST AHEAD! WE WILL ARRIVE MOMENTAR—" Eugene boomed overhead until he was interrupted by missiles hitting the highway. The road ahead of Fetch and Delsin was struck, sending the two of them flying backwards and outside of their neon-runner forms. As they struggled to come to their senses, two A.P.C.s zoomed past them, disappearing through the smoke and towards the other side, followed by helicopters in the air

"ARE YOU ALRIGHT?" Eugene asked, still flying high.

"Yeah, we're… fine," Delsin managed to say, "But we could use some air support."

"AS YOU COMMAND!" Eugene replied before flying off.

"Fetch? You okay?" Delsin asked.

"Yeah, but could you… clear the smoke?" she asked while coughing.

"Huh? Oh yeah of course," he replied before draining the smoke in front of them, revealing two small craters in the road.

"That better?" he asked, helping her to her feet.

"Way better, let's go," she answered while zooming towards the action with Delsin following close behind.

In a matter of seconds, they caught up to the action. Eugene was trying his best to take down the helicopters, but he knew it shouldn't be on the road, where it might crash and hit other vehicles. Meanwhile, Delsin and Fetch were hot on the tail of one of the A.P.C.s. As they approached it, the vehicle's auto-turret kicked in, spitting bullets out across the road, forcing the conduits to weave to and fro. Just when they thought things couldn't get any worse, the back doors opened to reveal a soldier with a rocket launcher. That's when Delsin had an idea.

He zoomed forward as straight as he could and jumped right into the vehicle. Before the agent could discharge his weapon, the agent was thrown against the wall by Delsin, and the rocket laucher tumbled out of his reach. Delsin then jumped out of the vehicle the same way he came in and took aim. His reflexes kicked in and the world around him appeared to be slower as he found his target: the missile launcher. A beam of blue light erupted from Delsin's hand and it came into contact with the weapon, discharging it immediately. The explosion threw the A.P.C. off track and off the road, where it collided with a tree, setting off another explosion.

Taking only a brief moment to catch his breath, Delsin continued his pursuit by tailing the other A.P.C. with Fetch. When the D.U.P. helicopters realized what happened, they targeted the two conduits on the ground. Eugene, seeing this, knew he had to do something and fast. He came up with only one option. He flew up to one of the choppers and grabbed the tail of it, just past the tail blade, and dragged the vehicle to the ground off the road.

The sudden force must've knocked the pilot unconscious because the main blades began to slow, allowing Eugene to finish it off by unleashing a beam from his cupped hands, completely destroying the flying vehicle. During the commotion, the remaining helicopter unleashed a barrage of rockets, clouding the highway in smoke. When the other helicopter went down however, the still aerial vehicle turned its attention on Eugene. As Delsin and Fetch made their way through the smoke, they realized that the A.P.C. had vanished. However, another vehicle caught their attention: the mobile command center. Once they got close enough, the doors opened and Sam appeared, equipped with his new metal armor and weapons.

"Delsin! Fetch! Get in here!" he called out. Fetch, ahead of Delsin, was the first to jump in as she exited her light-runner form.

"Delsin c'mon!" Fetch called after getting to her feet. However, before Delsin could jump in, the missing A.P.C. reappeared again as its auto-turret turned red-hot. Sam slammed the doors shut, preventing any bulletes from hitting the interior.

Meanwhile, Delsin slowed and exited his light-runner form, causing the A.P.C. to zoom past him. He then continued to run at light-speed, chasing the D.U.P. vehicle. When he was mere feet from the A.P.C., the back doors opened, revealing another soldier with a missile launcher. This one, however, was able to discharge his weapon before Delsin jumped in. It missed him completely and struck the road behind him. Afterwards, Delsin jumped in and assaulted the agent, using his neon-cloaked chain to deliver the beat down.

"You clowns never learn," Delsin mocked as the agent became incapacitated. He then charged a phosphor beam and aimed it upwards. When the heavy weapon charged, it sheared through the vehicle as well as the turret on top, destroying it. Afterwards, Delsin lept out of the A.P.C. and unleashed one final phosphor beam, destroying the vehicle. Delsin took some time to catch his breath and comprehend what just happened. He only had a few moments though, before being distracted by the sound of a crashing helicopter. He looked behind him to see a towering angel flying overhead as he left a cloud of smoke behind him.

"DELSIN! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?" Eugene asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine, let's just catch up with the others!" Delsin called out.

"RIGHT YOU ARE!" And with that, the two remaining conduits sped across the highway and caught up with Sam, Bentley, and Fetch. They pulled off to the side of road, allowing both of them to come on board.

"Thank god you're okay," Fetch greeted.

"You make it sound like that was a challenge," Delsin quipped while out of breath, causing Fetch to roll her eyes.

"The important thing is we're all okay," Sam butted in.

"I hope the people at the motel are okay," Eugene added.

"Because of you three, I'm sure they are," Sam added, before picking up a walkie-talkie, "Everyone's accounted for, you ready Bentley?"

"Next stop, Empire City," Bentley replied while driving back onto the road. They had only driven for about ten minutes before Delsin remembered the card in his pocket. Fetch noticed him and walked over.

"I know what you're thinking D, don't do it," Fetch whispered.

"I have to know Fetch, I have to know where I sent them," Delsin whispered back. He then turned to face Sam, who was occupied on his phone.

"Hey Sly?"

"What is it?" Sam asked, still on his phone.

"Where are you taking the conduits who were at Curdun Cay?" Delsin asked, staring at the card in his hand.

"I told you, a distributional facility."

Delsin met Fetch's gaze and she shook her head at him.

"Who runs this facility?"

"That's classified."

"It's not the… N.S.A. by any chance is it?"

"Why would you think that?" Sam asked.

"You tell me…" he replied while throwing the card on the table, "…agent Cooper."

Sam looked away from his phone and quickly grasped the card, holding it firmly in his hand.

"Where did you get this?" he asked defensively.

"The D.U.P. had it," Delsin answered, "So let me ask you again: what are you doing with those conduits?"

Sam sighed heavily before starting again.

"Alright fine… you three deserve the truth. Truth is, I don't know what will happen to them."

"What?" Delsin replied angrily.

"You don't understand. This operation's in the dark. Nobody knows what the others are doing."

"So this really is some government cover-up crap."

"I swear, I don't work for the government."

"Bullshit!"

"It's true… I _used_ to work for the N.S.A., but not anymore."

There was a moment of silence before Delsin spoke again.

"You told me you were military."

"Sorry Delsin."

"Is Bentley in on this too?" Fetch asked nervously.

"No he isn't. He has nothing to hide so leave him out of this."

"But _you_ have something to hide," Delsin added, "Why are you after the Ray Sphere? What do you plan on doing with it?"

"Alright… I'll tell you."


	13. CHAPTER 10 - The Truth Relived

_It was eight years ago. I was a field agent, assigned to the conduit task force; we dedicated our careers to understanding conduits and what made them so different from humans. Even before the blast, the N.S.A. had become aware of the development of the Ray Sphere as well as its creators. The First Sons were an elite group of scientists and researchers who believed that biological enhancement was the answer to modern problems. Eventually, we were able to send in an agent to investigate: John White. The information he sent back was… unbelievable… to say the least. That was when we found out how to run tests of our own._

_Only three tests came back positive for the conduit gene: myself, John White, and… Lucy Kuo. The three of us were all part of separate divisions until that test came in, and the Conduit Task Force was created. It didn't take very long for Agent White to get close to the action, running into lead scientists such as Sebastian Wolfe and even their leader, Kessler. However, he eventually ran into another conduit in Empire City. John White and Cole Macgrath worked together to take down Kessler and the First Sons. They succeeded, however… John had died in Empire City, or so we thought._

_When the dust settled in Empire City, we were contacted by Moya Jones, a D.A.R.P.A. agent. After her dealings with Cole, she informed us of his visions of the apocalypse. A massive beast bent on destroying the world. We left nothing to chance. Once we found out about Dr. Sebastian Wolfe in New Marais, we decided that we had to send in an agent to recover Cole and send him to Wolfe, where he could prepare. I knew they would send in a conduit, so I volunteered. But I was turned down, and Kuo was sent in instead._

_They acquired a device known as the Ray Field Inhibitor, which countered the effects of the Ray Sphere. Not much later, we found out that John White had absorbed the Ray Sphere's ability to activate conduits. He had the ability to manipulate ray field energy. In the end they stopped them, but at a price. All three had died in New Marais in the fight against the Beast. We won that day, but it seemed like I was the only one who saw what we lost. They didn't care about Kuo, not even an acknowledgment. They covered up her death, claimed she didn't even exist. If there's one thing the government didn't like, it was a nosy public. I couldn't take it anymore, so I left._

_I realized that day, that if it weren't for conduits… things may have turned out differently. I developed a dislike for conduits… and only saw one remedy. Close to two weeks after New Marais, I heard about the Department of Unified Protection. They were dedicated to making America a safer place by rounding up conduits. I went for it. I lied about time in the military and gave them a fake name. I passed all their tests with flying colors, including the most important one, being a conduit. I was a monster, hunting down other beasts. I followed them for a while, but Curdun Cay showed the flaw in their belief, in my belief._

_Soon enough, I met others who were in the same boat, including Bentley. I knew I had to stop this… to stop her. I just wanted to get away from conduits and, somehow, I thought this would do it, but it didn't. Once I dedicated my life to understanding conduits, but now… I knew I had to dedicate my life to protecting them from both themselves, and the humans who wish to harm them._

"As soon as I heard about Delsin, I jumped at the opportunity. I knew this may be my one chance to help them," Sam concluded, ending his story.

"So, you're actually… Sly Cooper?" Delsin asked.

"Yes, when I left the N.S.A., I knew they would try and take me back… or worse," he explained, "So I had to change it."

"Why? When you quit, isn't everything done with?" Delsin asked.

"I didn't exactly… resign."

"You ran away," Fetch assumed. Sam nodded.

"And they weren't exactly happy with that."

"That still doesn't explain why you want the Ray Sphere," Delsin added.

"To destroy it," Sam replied coldly, "We thought it was gone along with John, but when we saw him transform, we knew there was a chance that it was still active."

"Can something like that even be destroyed?" Fetch asked.

"Of course, just not by normal means."

"What would not normal be?" Delsin asked.

"It has to be dismantled, carefully. Anything explosive could very well set it off and start this whole thing over again."

"Well then, we should probably get some sleep," Fetch replied, anxious to put an end to this, "Right Delsin?"

"Yeah… that's a… good idea," he replied while heading towards one of the bunks.

No one else said anything as they all followed Delsin and took their place in one of the bunks, all but Sam. He stayed seated at the table However, _none_ of them got much sleep that night, having too much to think about. Delsin in particular knew that, despite Sam's story, there was something else he was hiding. About an hour later, they pulled off to the side of the road and Sam took his seat at the wheel, leaving his metal armor in the command center, with Bentley in the passenger seat. After a few minutes of silence, Bentley spoke.

"It's better that they know."

"Know what?" Sam asked defensively.

"You left your walkie-talkie on," Bentley explained. A heavy sigh erupted from Sam's mouth.

"Although, I thought you were gonna' give the Ray Sphere to the N.S.A.," Bentley continued.

"I realized it won't prove anything, it won't bring her—"

"Thank you," Bentley interjected, "This _is_ the best course of action, for everyone." Sam stared at the road ahead of them, an infinitesimal smile appearing on his face. Hours later, close to ten a.m., the M.C.C. had arrived at their destination, or so the group thought. Now on the outskirts of New York, the only bridge leading into the city was gated off, and guarded by Army soldiers.

"Crap," Sam muttered to himself as they were forced to stop.

"What are we gonna' do?" Bentley asked as one soldier walked up to Sam's window.

"Just let me do the talking," he replied just as the soldier appeared in Sam's window, causing him to roll it down.

"This area is under quarantine, please move along," he ordered.

"It's imperative that my team and I get into the city. It's a matter of national security."

"Nobody is allowed in or out of the city, especially D.U.P. soldiers."

"Perhaps I can show you my team?" Sam suggested while opening the car door.

"Please sir, remain in your vehicle," the soldier ordered while pointing his rifle at him.

"We don't need to do that," Sam replied while holding out his hand, causing the soldier's gun to face the ground as he walked towards the back of the command center. Bentley threw his head into his hands.

"You're a… bio-terrorist," he replied. Ignoring his comment, Sam opened the doors, revealing three exhausted conduits. The soldier followed Sam, hesitantly, and saw the heroes he was all too familiar with.

"This is Eugene Sims, Abigail Walker, and Delsin Rowe: the saviors of Seattle," Sam stated matter-of-factly.

"Who are _you_?" he asked. Sam sighed at the question and dug into his pocket.

"I'm agent Sam Cooper of the N.S.A. We're here on official business," Sam replied while displaying his I.D. card. The soldier looked at the card and his eyes went wide.

"I don't suppose you'll let me verify the card?" the soldier replied with his hand out-stretched. After a moment of consideration, Sam placed the card into his hand.

"Not at all," he replied blankly. The soldier took the card back towards his post and typed into a small device. After a few moments, the card was returned the Sam.

"You check out, go on ahead," he ordered.

"Thank you," Sam replied while stepping into the truck and driving across the bridge, gate now opened.

"How did that work?" Bentley asked, awe-struck.

"Never quit, remember?"

Meanwhile, at the checkpoint, the soldiers watched the group drive across the bridge.

"Was that really Agent Cooper? One asked the soldier who spoke to Sam.

"Yes it was, call it in."

He pulled out a walkie-talkie and spoke into it.

"Alert agent Montoya, we found Cooper."

At long last, after days on the road, the group had arrived in Empire City. All five made preparations inside the command center, and one by one, they all left, until it was just Sam and Fetch. After equipping his armor and weapons, Sam found himself at the door, ready to push it open when Fetch spoke.

"Lucy Kuo." Sam stopped dead in his tracks, "She was the one you were talking about back at the motel wasn't she?"

He gave no response.

"Sam?"

"I knew she was going to be assigned to the mission. She had the most experience. After a few assignments together, I thought… She would never though. The mission always came first for her. I tried, begged, to do this mission, so she wouldn't have to, but they wouldn't listen, and _she_ paid the price."

"If _you_ did that mission, none of us would be here right now. We'd all be rotting in Cudun Cay, or worse," Fetch reminded.

Ignoring her statement, he threw open the doors and walked outside, leaving Fetch to follow. They all stood outside, mouth agape, staring at the sight before them. It was a wasteland. There wasn't a single building left standing. The ground itself composed of crumbled steel and concrete. Underpasses were transformed into collapsed caves, and the road in front of them dropped close to ten feet.

"Guys," Sam began coldly, "Welcome… to Empire City." 


	14. EPILOGUE

Forty-Nine Hours Ago

At Curdun Cay Station, the conduits grew restless. Some went as far as to leave the compound on their own or in small groups. Most, however, stayed inside its walls to shelter themselves from the cold, waiting for their rescuers. One conduit could be seen staring out a hall-window before walking to the bench against the opposite wall, where another conduit sat, and then returning to the window.

"Do you mind? You're giving me a headache," Tj complained.

"Sorry, I'm just a little—" Ashton began.

"Annoying?" Tj interjected, postioning himself to lay on his back on the bench.

"Excited," he corrected, "It's already been what… an hour?"

"Since Delsin left? Something like that," Tj replied, trying to get comfortable on the bench, "We've been stuck in here for years, surely you can wait another hour or so?"

"I know… it's just…"

Ashton couldn't finish his thought.

"How did you get your powers?" Tj asked abruptly.

"Huh?" Ashton asked, shocked by the question.

"Your powers, how'd you get them?" he repeated, sitting up on the bench, "And how did you become the pale crusader?"

Ashton leaned against the wall where the bench lied and let out a sigh before beginning his story.

_I was in high school when it happened. One night, my friends and I were driving, and we met another car on the road… head-on. That's when my powers kicked in. Instead of crumpling into us, the other car tapped us and then was shot in the other direction. My friends were thankful of course, yet… leery of me. Not like I could blame them. After moving around quite a bit, I found myself isolated from my family. Finally, I was able to start school at a small college. Hiding my… features, I thought I could blend in… I thought I could fit in. Soon enough, another conduit came and ruined everything. From what I saw it looked like he manipulated gravity. He caused the ceiling in our hall to collapse. I stepped in. I used my powers to create a shield, protecting everyone from the falling debris. The D.U.P. must've been chasing this guy for a while because it wasn't too long before they caught both of us and locked us away._

"And you can pretty much picture the rest," Ashton concluded. Tj sat silently, comprehending his story.

"What about you?" Ashton asked, "How did you get your powers?"

Tj grunted as he stood up and walked towards the window on the opposite wall. Moments later, he began his story.

_There was this jerk back in school. He didn't care about anything or anyone, except money. He'd make close to two hundred bucks a day, off other students. Nobody reported him, since doing so would've been a death sentence. One day, during lunch, I was leaving to go off campus with my girlfriend, and we ran into him. Before we could even get into the car, he went at it, trying to steal our money. He threw her to the ground and I snapped._

_I slugged him, bloodied his nose. When he looked at me, he looked pissed. He threw me against my car door, and went back to my girlfriend. He decided that he wanted more than money from her. That's when it happened. I held out my hand and shards of glass from my car door shot into him. His back was littered. Horrified, my girlfriend ran back towards the campus. The next thing I knew, police sirens filled the air. I had to get out of there. I drove away, far away, where nobody could find me. I hid in an abandoned building, going outside now and then to get food._

_The next month or so, I learned how to use my power, how to control it. However, it wouldn't prove useful. The D.U.P. found me. I gave them a run for their money, but it wasn't enough. Curdun Cay was going to be my new home._

"And some home it turned out to be," Tj concluded, looking out the window.

"At least we'll be leaving soon," Ashton reminded.

"Yeah… like now, check this out," Tj spoke, still looking outside the window. Ashton took a place right next to Tj and also looked outside the window. He saw several large vehicles and helicopters enter the compound. Intrigued, the two of them ran down the hall and outside. Sveral other conduits had the same idea as they met outside. At least ten A.P.C.s zoomed into the complex while helicopters circled above. One A.P.C. stopped right in front of the group… and a woman stepped out. She wore a heavy hoodie as she pressed against an ear-piece and spoke.

"I want teams A and B to gather the D.U.P. soldiers, both dead and alive. And have the choppers check the perimeter, make sure we didn't miss anyone." She then turned to look at the group.

"What are you waiting for? Come on!" she ordered as she walked back towards the A.P.C. she stepped out of.

"Who are you?" Tj asked, cauaing her to turn around. After a moment of silence, she spoke.

"I'm Agent Alex Cooper. I'm with the First Sons."


	15. Special Thanks

Special Thanks

If you submitted a character through "OC Emergency" or PM and was featured in this story it will be listed here. Authors will be included with the character below. I wish to thank you all for submitting your entries. NOTE: Characters are listed in order of appearance.

Author – Character

Tjfanfics99 - Tj

Deathstrider777 - Aston Pryce

werewolf35 - Sebastian Wong

P.S. If you your pen name differs from what is listed above, please PM me and I will fix it ASAP.


End file.
